U.S.A. drought at worst level in nearly 4 years

California’s first measure of snowpack for 2018 is coming up well below levels recorded the same time last year. And there are concerns the drier start this winter could send the state back into drought. —AP

The dry times are back. Drought has returned with a vengeance across much of the United States, with the worst conditions across southern and western parts of the nation. As of Thursday, 38.4% of the continental U.S. is in a drought, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. That is the highest percentage since the 40% recorded in May 2014. In California, which emerged from a brutal four-year drought last year, 44% of the state is now considered to be in a moderate drought.

That’s a dramatic jump from just last week, when the figure was 13%. Major winter storms have mostly bypassed the West, meaning that much-needed mountain snow has not fallen, said NOAA meteorologist Richard Heim, author of this week’s Drought Monitor.

This winter, snow sensors across the Sierra Nevada show the snowpack is just 30% of average for this time of year. The Sierra provides water to millions of Californians. "It’s not nearly where we’d like to be," Frank Gehrke, […]

Full article: U.S. drought at worst level in nearly 4 years