Atmospheric rivers pounding California since late last year have coated mountains with a full winter's worth of snow and begun raising reservoir levels but experts say it will take much more to precipitation to reverse the effects of years of drought. The U.S. Drought Monitor's weekly update Thursday shows that "extreme" drought has been virtually eliminated. Two weeks ago extreme drought covered 35% of California. The Drought Monitor characterizes the improvement as a significant reduction in drought intensity but cautions that large parts of the state still have moisture deficits. Most of the state is now in the "severe" or "moderate" categories of drought.
Snowpack in California's mountains is off to one of its best starts in 40 years. State officials said Tuesday that the statewide snow depth is 174% of the historical average this year. Much of that is because of a spate of recent storms that have dumped snow in the Sierra Nevada. Even more snow is expected later this week and over the weekend. But state officials cautioned that the recent weather isn't enough by itself to end the drought. The past three years in California have been the driest ever recorded dating back to 1896. Many more storms will be needed to officially end the drought.
