The Truckee Meadows and Lake Tahoe area is now in a moderate drought.
According to the US Drought Monitor, this is the next step above abnormally dry conditions. A moderate drought is not as bad as a severe drought, but it is still something to be mindful of.
The last time the Tahoe Basin was abnormally dry was on March 31st. The drought monitor doesn't tell the whole story, though.
Our reservoirs are doing well overall, and the Tahoe and Truckee are at or above 80% of capacity.
Reno is now in a moderate drought. The US Drought Monitor takes into consideration a variety of different indices including precipitation, evaporation, snowpack, reservoir storage, and streamflows.Â
Speaking of a severe drought, Lander, Eureka, western Humboldt, southern Elko, and White Pine counties are all in a severe drought, with even worse conditions in northwest Elko County.
On March 31st, Reno, Tahoe, and as far west as Churchill County were all abnormally dry, with a moderate drought in Lander, Eureka, and parts of Humboldt County.
Bottom line: the drought is getting worse. Our warm March did not help our cause, but thankfully, we at least got some moisture in April.Â
The Vegetation Health Index is one index that drought experts look at while coming up with their analysis. Green is good vegetation health while yellows, oranges, and reds indicate poor health. The Sierra is a mix of both, with worse vegetation health just east of Reno.Â
The drought monitor takes into consideration soil moisture, precipitation amounts, vegetation health, stream flows, reservoir storage, snowpack, evaporative demands, and temperature.
The final product is a compilation of both observations and expert analysis. It’s updated weekly by a climate expert. Thankfully, both the Truckee and Tahoe Reservoirs in Nevada are doing well.Â
