It looks like we have a warm, dry summer ahead, and that means we could see drought return to our state.
A warm May caused an early snowpack melt off, so we’re past concern about flooding from the melt, says Karin Bumbaco, assistant State climatologist at UW. Stream flows are lower than we’d like, but Bumbaco says the utilities are in good shape for drinking water, including Seattle. “Seattle Public Utilities didn’t completely fill their Tolt Reservoir, but their other reservoir (Chester Morse Lake) is completely full,” Bumbaco says, “We’ve been on the dry side. The warm temperatures in May increased demand a little bit too, so it’s just something we have to continue to watch this summer.”
Bumbaco tells Northwest Newsradio an El Niño forming in the Pacific this early in the year usually means warmer summer temperatures, so when it comes to drought, “we’re really not expecting to be making up any deficits that we’re already seeing, so I would expect, if anything, for more drought to develop in Washington State.” While Bumbaco says drought west of the Cascades will be a little worse, central Washington is not immune, with junior water rights holders already expecting 73% of their allocations.