Above normal temperatures, limited precipitation recorded locally so far this winter
Vernon and the entire Okanagan has seen very little winter weather so far this year.
Brian Proctor, a meteorologist with Environment Canada, said the persistent and strong El Nino system over the Pacific Ocean has resulted in above average temperatures and low precipitation levels locally.
“That’s allowed some very warm waters to propagate northwards and we’re seeing a lot of very active funnel systems moving onto the coast, but the one thing that is happening is we’ve got a really strong upper ridge acting in combination with those El Nino conditions to really limit any moisture penetration across the coast mountains into the Interior of British Columbia,” Proctor told Vernon Matters.
“So what we’ve been seeing largely is sort of mixed skies overrunning clouds to a large degree and very little in the way of organized [precipitation] getting into the Interior of B.C.”
Proctor said the weather isn;t expected to change much over the next couple days, with temperatures above the average of minus two during the days and overnight lows of minus eight for this time of year, and little to no precipitation.
“If you compare this winter to the last winter, we were a little bit more active, a little bit more season-like last year, compared to what we’ve been this year so far,” Proctor said, and though he added that a preliminary long range forecast from the weather agency showed El Nino continue to be the dominant system, the Okanagan Valley could see a cool down with temperatures dropping to seasonal levels for an early January cold snap.
“I think we have a chance of seeing a little bit of snowfall coming into the area, sort of the 5th, 6th, and 7th of January at this point in time. Not a lot of confidence in that pattern but it does look like it’s going to cool down.”
The Environment Canada meteorologist also said a cooler air mass may move into the valley and bring snowfall towards the middle of January, but that may be negated by the El Nino’s ongoing effects.
With the low precipitation levels this fall and winter, the snow packs and reservoirs have not had much chance to grow this fall and winter.
“We’ve really done very little to alleviate the drought conditions that we went into the fall with over the area,” Proctor told Vernon Matters.
“Typically we need that snowpack, that winter snowpack, to help alleviate and recharge the reservoirs, recharge the lakes and the aquafers, and we’ve done very little to this point in time to help alleviate those drought concerns over the Interior. So it’s definitely a problem moving forward and we really do need Mother Nature to work with us, give us some precipitation, to get out of those concerns.”
He warned that should there be little precipitation over the winter the region could go into the spring and summer with another water deficit, which could result in worsened drought conditions and increased fire risk and activity.
“We’re still in a moisture deficit situation, we’re below normal precipitation and we’ve had months of it accumulating so we really do need a significant amount of precipitation moving through the winter to help alleviate those concerns,” Proctor said.
“If we don’t get that precipitation, we’re going to enter spring in a very significant moisture deficit situation or drought situation, which will then exacerbate moving forward as we get into the hot, dry summer.”
Though municipalities and local governments are in charge of water restrictions, Proctor did encourage people conserve their water this winter to reduce future risks.
“In general terms, when we’re here in these moisture deficit type situations and we’re not getting a lot of moisture, it’s best for all people to look at how they’re using their water resources and be as effective as they can in utilizing them,” Proctor said.
“Being on the conservative side in this case is probably a very good approach to take.”