Water + Weather for March 2024

Transcript

Dr. Mark Wentzel - Hydrologist, Texas Water Development Board

Hi everyone, and welcome to the Texas Water Development Board's latest Water and Weather report. I'm Dr. Mark Wentzel, a hydrologist in the Surface Water Division here at the agency. And today, we'll be taking a look at conditions for our state at the end of March.

Let's take a look at some of the big water and weather headlines. March was warmer than normal for most of the state and drier than normal for about half the state. At the end of March, 24 percent of the state was in drought, up almost two percentage points from the end of February. Statewide, storage in our water supply reservoirs is about 72 percent of capacity, more than 12 percentage points below normal for this time of year. In the next few months, drought is expected to contract in Central Texas and expand in West Texas.

Let's take a closer look at temperature and precipitation. On these maps, we're looking at both parameters relative to what is considered normal for March. From a water supply perspective, reds, oranges, and yellows mean trouble on both maps. They show areas with above-average temperature on the left and below-average precipitation on the right. March temperatures were above normal for most of the state. Precipitation was above normal for some areas of the state, particularly the northeast, but rainfall was below normal for large areas of the Panhandle and West, Central, and South Texas. As a result, the area of drought expanded slightly in March.

This is the Drought Monitor map for conditions as of March 26. On this map, 24 percent of the state is in drought, the tan, orange, and red colors, up almost two percentage points from the end of February. Central and West Texas remain the areas most severely impacted.

March also brought a decline in our statewide surface water supply conditions. The dark line on this chart shows how storage in our water supply reservoirs this year compares to minimum, maximum, and median values for the day of the year from data going back to 1990. Also displayed are lighter lines that show how we did in 2023 and 2022 and a red line that shows how we did in 2011. Statewide, surface water supplies ended March at about 72 percent of capacity, down nearly 1.5 percentage points from the end of February. Current conditions are more than 12 percentage points lower than normal for the time of year.

What can we expect over the next few months? Here's the latest seasonal drought outlook from the National Weather Service for conditions through the end of June. During that time, they expect drought to be eliminated from the eastern half of the Panhandle and some of Central Texas. Drought is expected to expand in the west and the western Panhandle. That concludes our report. Until next time, I hope you all stay healthy and safe.