Before long, we are told to stop washing our cars, cease watering the grass, and take other water conservation steps. In this situation, sunny weather is not always the best weather. Here in the desert Southwest, weeks without rain are not uncommon. However, when the weeks turn to months, serious problems can arise. Because of the fact that much of our drinking water comes from snowmelt, a dry winter can have serious implications in terms of how much water is available for the following summer season.
Most locations have sufficient water reservoirs to make it through one dry winter.
The real problem becomes back to back dry winter seasons, similar to what is occurring during the 1998-2000 period of time. With two significantly below-normal precipitation winter seasons, reservoirs are becoming low and the fire danger rises as the forests dry out. However, summer rains can alleviate the situation, as the monsoon season typically develops by July. The Dust Bowl days of the 1930's affected 50,000,000 acres of land, rendering farmers helpless. In the 1950's, the Great Plains suffered a severe water shortage when several years went by with rainfall well below normal.