Winter La Nina Forecast Pt 3
I’m Bob Larson. The winter months ahead are very likely going to be a La Nina type of season, with slightly cooler and wetter weather in store for the Pacific Northwest.
Washington State Climatologist, Nick Bond says that means we’re probably looking at more snowpack in the mountains, AND some in the lowlands …
BOND … “Compared to the neutral winters when there’s not either El Nino or La Nina, again, the La Nina winters tend to have some more of that low land snow and just colder, snowier conditions also east of the Cascades in the Columbia Basin and the Inland Empire region.”
It could also mean, Bond says the winter weather could hang around longer …
BOND … “In some cases, that’s, you know, maybe there’s limited benefits there that winter hangs on well into March, even into April. And, for some interests that can be a problem getting out into the fields and so forth and it’s like, okay we’ve got enough, where’s spring? And so, we’ve seen that plenty where there’s just winter that lasts just that much longer.”
But, Bond says it’s always comes down to water and this winter should leave us with plenty …
BOND … “Overall, good news, of course, for winter sports enthusiasts, for hydro power concerns and, you know, for most the water districts, this is a good thing.”
From the standpoint of a growers water needs, Bond says this should leave everyone with all they need, unless, of course, it doesn’t.
