Mass on Drought Emergency Pt 1
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson. The Washington State Department of Ecology has declared a drought emergency for much of the state, but not everyone is buying the notion.
Cliff Mass, professor of atmospheric science at the University of Washington, says DOE claims to be worried about our low snowpack …
MASS … “What has happened is the snowpack is below normal. Not as bad as it’s gotten, but it’s below normal and it has to do with the fact we’ve been in this El Nino year which you end up with near-normal precipitation but because of the temperatures aloft and because of the type of atmospheric structures that developed during the El Nino years we tend to have less of a snowpack here in Washington state.”
Which, Mass says is what we have come to expect …
MASS … “On the other hand, all you have to do is go south of the Washington border, and if you go to Oregon or California, not only is the precipitation huge, but the snowpack is above normal. So, for the West Coast as a whole, you know, this has been a tremendously good year in terms of both precipitation and snowpack.”
Bottom line, Mass says …
MASS … “So, there’s no drought going on in the West Coast. It’s really silly.”
The Department of Ecology made the declaration with the state's water supply at less than 75% of normal. Currently, statewide snowpack is at 68% of normal.
Tune in tomorrow and hear more from Mass on why he doesn’t believe our so called drought isn’t much of an emergency.
