You could have kept your favorite raincoat in mothballs all winter and scarcely gotten damp.
Instead of rain, the sun reigned.
More than usual, too, during what is jocularly known as the rainy season.
Was a dry winter in the midst of a drought as damagingly problematic for Southern California as weather predicting mavens boldly were declaring six months ago?
They said El Nino would make sweeping repeat appearances, drenching us, quenching Mama Nature’s thirst for steady rainfall.
Charles Herbertson, the thoughtful Public Works director, figuratively stroked his chin, pondering what once would have been a longshot question.
No, he said, he did not believe damage had been inflicted. As long as Northern California, the Southland’s feeder, continues to receive fairly regular rain, nature’s thirst should be satisfactorily accommodated.
Mr. Herbertson tacked on a caveat: “Of course I am not a weatherman.”
Scott Houston, a director of the West Basin Municipal Water District, more closely fits that description.
He confirmed Mr. Herbertson’s keen observation.
“It’s more important to receive El Nino rain and snow in Northern California on balance,” Mr. Houston said. “Local rain in Southern California provides temporary relief vs. long-term relief.
“While our reservoirs in Northern California are reaching capacity that will help carry us through the hot summer months, it still is critical for our region to maintain our conservation efforts and not lose sight of long-term water supply shortages we may face in the future.”
Mr. Houston said that Northern California rainfall and snowpack provide half of the imported water supplies for Southern California.
“The runoff from the melting snow, and rainfall captured in reservoirs in the northern part of the state, is delivered through the aqueducts during the hot summer,” he said. “That is when water use is at its highest.
“Local rain, while important, runs off into the ocean due to lack of significant local storage reservoirs. Some rainfall is captured and replenished into local groundwater basins when available.”
It is important to remember that rainwater capture has to be balanced with flood threats in the Los Angeles area,” Mr. Houston said.
