Rains throughout October and November mean Southeast Alaska is finally out of “severe drought” status for the first time since September of 2018. Ketchikan, Wrangell and Juneau are still in “moderate drought.”Sitka, Hoonah and Haines remain “abnormally dry,” though not in drought.
It’s official: the Kenai Peninsula is in a moderate drought. After months of warm weather and little rain, the United States Drought Monitor designated the region abnormally dry. The drought is creating a crisis for farmers who are having to water their crops more often while at the same time their wells are drying up. There are roughly 260 farms on the peninsula.
A Kenai Peninsula village is rapidly running out of water. Low snowpack and little rainfall has led Nanwalek to declare a water emergency.
Less snow than usual fell in the area this winter. It melted early, exposing the tundra. A steady wind has dried the vegetation, and hardly any precipitation has fallen since early March. Thoman said that with no rain and abundant sunshine, the tundra has remained brown and dry. The fire still is not threatening the community of Kwethluk or any Native allotments.
One ecologist wonders, for the yellow cedar forests and the people who care about them, what comes after climate change and environmental loss in Southeast Alaska?
The water well is dry due to a lack of rain, and the village’s distribution system is damaged. As of Thursday, residents had only 5,000 gallons of drinkable water left.
Southeast Alaska has suffered from a drought and warmer-than-normal temperatures for about two years now. The month of July broke more records.
One of the worst droughts in the nation is in Southeast Alaska. That’s according to federal meteorologists. Ground zero is Wrangell, a city that’s struggled for years to keep up with summer water demand. Wrangell’s water supply comes from two reservoirs. Levels are healthy right now, even overflowing. But the flume that feeds water into them is already dry, thanks to warm dry weather and 50% less snow pack then last year.
All Topics
All Countries
Any Date
Apply