# More water news, not all that good



## MNichols (Nov 20, 2015)

Here's another article in the water situation, doesn't seem like it's looking up. 








Water planners pray for snow as 2022 forecast shows dry weather ahead - Water Education Colorado


Colorado’s water forecast, already strained by back-to-back drought years, is unlikely to brighten this fall and winter, as forecasts indicate more dry weather lies ahead. Water planners use something known as the water year to track and predict snow and rain, as well as winds and soil...




www.watereducationcolorado.org


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## Big George Waters (Jul 2, 2021)

This is not good, and it seems like things are changing worldwide, and not for the better.
Thanks for posting this informative article.


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## Aquadog (Dec 8, 2018)

Yes! Absolutely not good! Out here in Utah this year a lot of my favorite smaller rivers were un runable. It's quite depressing..hoping and praying for snow, but it's not looking promising. Thanks for posting.


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## DarkSky (Sep 27, 2021)

Time will tell, but don't count chickens before they hatch. Drought attracts water and floods bring on drought. Nature abhors a vacuum and always wants to revert to the mean.


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## GeoRon (Jun 24, 2015)

The mean resulting from extremes can be very undesirable.


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## Bootboy (Aug 25, 2020)

A little farther west we are off to great start. One of the wettest October’s in recent memory. I hope we can keep it up.

La Niña can go either way for us here in Utah as far as winter goes. Fingers crossed.


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## MNichols (Nov 20, 2015)

On the research end of things, NOAA is being proactive again, at least as far as forecasting. Will be interesting to see the output of this research..




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Researchers head to the mountains to improve weather and water forecasting tools - Welcome to NOAA Research






research.noaa.gov





And for those of you that like aggregation sites, this one pulls forecasts from the NOAA sites and compiles them




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Long Range Outlooks | Mountain Weather







www.mountainweather.com


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## Andy H. (Oct 13, 2003)

MNichols said:


> On the research end of things, NOAA is being proactive again, at least as far as forecasting. Will be interesting to see the output of this research..
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 Thanks for posting the links, Marshall. It'll be interesting to see what they find. Hopefully we'll have some good precip this fall to help out with the soil moisture so there'll be better runoff in the spring!


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## MNichols (Nov 20, 2015)

Andy H. said:


> Thanks for posting the links, Marshall. It'll be interesting to see what they find. Hopefully we'll have some good precip this fall to help out with the soil moisture so there'll be better runoff in the spring!


Fingers crossed my friend...


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## NoCo (Jul 21, 2009)

It does look bleak, but some possitivity can come from this. This may finally force the conversation of water rights and irrigating the dessert.


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## GeoRon (Jun 24, 2015)

Bootboy said:


> A little farther west we are off to great start. One of the wettest October’s in recent memory. I hope we can keep it up.
> 
> La Niña can go either way for us here in Utah as far as winter goes. Fingers crossed.


Most of the west at this VERY early date is looking great!


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## MNichols (Nov 20, 2015)

Another relevant link about Managing Western US Water Resources in a Low-to-No-Snow Future ..








Managing Western US Water Resources in a Low-to-No-Snow Future


With mountain snowpacks shrinking in the western US, new Berkeley Lab study analyzes when a low-to-no-snow future might arrive and implications for water management. Mountain snowpacks around the world are on the decline, and if the planet continues to warm, climate models forecast that snowpacks



scitechdaily.com





*With mountain snowpacks shrinking in the western US, new Berkeley Lab study analyzes when a low-to-no-snow future might arrive and implications for water management.*

Mountain snowpacks around the world are on the decline, and if the planet continues to warm, climate models forecast that snowpacks could shrink dramatically and possibly even disappear altogether on certain mountains, including in the western United States, at some point in the next century. A new study led by researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) analyzes the likely timing of a low-to-no-snow future, what it will mean for water management, and opportunities for investments now that could stave off catastrophic consequences.


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## samcpa (Nov 8, 2014)

So we all learned in science class there are 3 forms of "water" 1) liquid 2) vapor and 3) frozen. And there is a finite amount of "water" on this earth, less what we send to the Moon or Mars, so where is the water going? Why are we short? Have a drink thinking about that and in the meantime, if it's yellow let it mellow and if it's brown flush it down. And keep the lid down if you have a dog.


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## Andy H. (Oct 13, 2003)

Just in case you're serious with the "where's the water going?" question, a general maxim about climate change is "the wet places will get wetter, and the dry places will get drier." And with warming, a lot of the water that's frozen will become liquid, and a lot of the water that's liquid will become vapor.


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## upacreek (Mar 17, 2021)

Rain doesn't follow the plow and snow only directly drives streamflow during the spring melt/runoff period; the alarming point only alluded to is that groundwater recharge is also in significant decline throughout the West and that's what _sustains flows_ throughout the summer and into fall. Sure, water managers are ever-worried about filling the coffers to meet demand, but us boater wants good flows beyond just April/May/June so if can't depend on supplement releases from stored supplies...that spells the real trouble here. Think about those rock bottom flows on the Upper C this year, for example. The vadose zone is often thought of a some giant mystery and a source of much consternation among the water prognosticating crowd. So whether it's an above or below average snow year, its important to think beyond best-guess forecasts or model predictions to also recognize that long-term drought are manifesting compounding, cascading changes to regional groundwater networks that are resulting in these less predictable, consistently lower flows.


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## DarkSky (Sep 27, 2021)

Andy H. said:


> Just in case you're serious with the "where's the water going?" question, a general maxim about climate change is "the wet places will get wetter, and the dry places will get drier." And with warming, a lot of the water that's frozen will become liquid, and a lot of the water that's liquid will become vapor.


And that vapor will become liquid. Rising sea levels are where it is going, slowly, surely. Buying lowland property is not so good an idea. Also, don't drink seawater, It will make you barf.


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## Andy H. (Oct 13, 2003)

DarkSky said:


> And that vapor will become liquid. Rising sea levels are where it is going, slowly, surely. Buying lowland property is not so good an idea. Also, don't drink seawater, It will make you barf.


Yup, "Houston, you (will) have a problem."


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