Thursday, September 12, 2013

Precipitation in September not Enough to Change Drought Trends

Stage III Critical Drought
Barton Springs:  15.4 cfs 10-day average based on correlation with Lovelady
Lovelady monitor well: 458.3 ft-msl

Rainfall in September has been good. As of September 12th, 2.45 inches of rain have been measured at the District rain gauge; the historic monthly average is 3.5 inches. Despite the amount of precipitation over the last couple of weeks, recharge to the aquifer has been minimal, with most of the rain water going to replenishing parched soils and vegetation. As a result, water levels in the aquifer continue to decline, creeping closer to Stage IV Exceptional drought. Unless recharge conditions substantially improve we project approaching the Stage IV threshold around the end of the year. 

Last month the USGS began posting real time data from our Lovelady monitor well. That data can be viewed at the following link:


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