Here’s what you need to know about Northern California drought during long dry streak

Downtown Sacramento is breaking records on both sides of the precipitation spectrum as it will reach a dry streak of 61 days without rain at the end of Wednesday, after having had a record-breaking storm in October.

And it’s not looking great for Northern California’s drought conditions.

“California has always had a very volatile precipitation history,” said Claudia Faunt, a hydrologist with the California Water Science Center.

She cited the state’s climate is getting more extreme with big floods and dry streaks.

According to the National Weather Service office in Sacramento, downtown is currently at below normal precipitation for the water year, which is Oct. 1 to Sept. 30. The dry streak began in early January and is not only affecting Sacramento.

Cities across California, such as Redding and Stockton, have experienced record or near record dry conditions in January and February. The California Cooperative Snow Surveys show that the Northern, Central and Southern Sierra are also getting below average snow water equivalents, which is critical for the state’s water supply.

“The Sierra provides about 30% of the water that California uses,” Faunt said. The other main sources of water include surface water and groundwater.

As Sacramento continues to face dry conditions, Faunt explained what this could mean for drought.

Does this dry streak affect Northern California drought?

Faunt said it’s almost always hard coming from one dry year and then getting another one.

In 2021, according to the California Department of Water Resources, Northern California was facing its second dry year with Sacramento and Redding “experiencing less than half of their average annual precipitation.”

Faunt said to think of the drought and water system as a bank account.

“There’s ins and outs,” she said. “We’ve had less water coming in, so there’s less water in the overall system.”

She said the drought won’t get any better with the dryness, but there’s some hope.

“One of the things we have going for us this year is we had that wet period in the fall and December,” Faunt said.

With the record precipitation, Faunt said the soil was able to fill up on rain water, unlike a year ago when the snowpack melted and was quickly absorbed into the ground and soil, and not run off to fill up the reservoirs.

“So I think it’s very promising that we still have some of that soil moisture,” she said. “So this snowpack, as it melts, can get into the surface water system and fill up our surface water reservoirs.”

She said these reservoirs are one of the first places where we get our water in a lot of the state, especially in the northern parts.

Are there environmental consequences from the dry streak?

Any drought is going to affect the environment since there’s not enough water available to fill up streams and reservoirs, Faunt said.

When water levels drop, it affects plants that depend on their roots reaching groundwater and fish in streams.

According to a study on extreme dry spells, long periods without precipitation can have negative effects on agriculture and ecosystems and can cause a wildfire risk, depending on the duration and timing.

What can people do to prepare for dry streaks and drought?

With reduced rainfall, people can prepare for drought by conserving water, according to Ready.gov, a natural disaster preparedness program. This includes fixing dripping faucets, checking leaky plumbing systems and using water-efficient lawn irrigation tools.

Faunt said people should use less water.

“If you take out less, there’s more available to be used,” she said.

She also recommends people look into sustainable land uses, since different types of land may use more water than others. She said people should also find ways to use stormwater or extra water when we do have it.

The agency said people can consider saving rainwater and to not dispose of extra water. Instead use them for watering indoor or outdoor plants.

When is the dry streak going to end?

According to the weather service, the dry streak is anticipated to end early next week. Forecasts show a chance of showers Monday night and Tuesday.

This story was originally published March 9, 2022 at 2:05 PM.