Drought in New Jersey, February 1 to 28, 2002

Unseasonably dry weather intensified across New Jersey during the month of February. It was the driest February on record across the state. The preliminary monthly statewide average precipitation total was 0.78 inches. The previous record was 0.92 inches set in 1901. Normal is 3.15 inches. On a county weighted average, monthly precipitation totals ranged from 0.5 inches in Salem County to 1.0 inch in Morris County. Fifteen of the last seventeen months in the state were drier than normal. It was also the driest meteorological winter (December through February) on record in the state. The preliminary seasonal average precipitation total was 5.32 inches. The previous record was 5.49 inches set during the winter of 1979-80. Normal is 10.60 inches.The continued dry weather, the drop in stream flow and groundwater levels and the reduced levels in the New York State reservoirs forced the New Jersey State Department of Environmental Protection to continue the drought warning for all of New Jersey except for Union, Middlesex and Somerset Counties. The unseasonably dry weather in February exacerbated the drought and forced several individual counties to declare water emergencies, especially in the northeast part of the state. On February 27th, Morris County declared a water emergency and issued mandatory restrictions that prohibited the non-commercial washing of vehicles and paved surfaces. The county also prohibited serving water without asking in restaurants and operating decorative fountains and waterfalls. Sussex County issued a water use advisory asking residents to conserve water. The Clinton Water Authority in Hunterdon County declared a drought emergency and restricted customers from washing any outside surfaces or vehicles. Signs of the worsening drought were obvious through hydrological measurements during February. Four northern New Jersey reservoirs remained around 43 percent of capacity, about half of their normal level. The low water level exposed islands and rocks no one has seen for years in the Boonton Reservoir. Release reductions continued from the Wanaque, Point View, Boonton and Split Rock Reservoirs and reduced passing flow continued on the Passaic, Pompton, Ramapo, Raritan, Saddle, Shark, Jumping Brook, Manasquan and Metedeconk Rivers. Water was released from the Merrill Creek Reservoir to help maintain a base flow on the Delaware River. Water was diverted from central New Jersey to help the cities of Newark and Elizabeth. Record low streamflow for calendar days were set for the Rancocas Creek in Pemberton (Burlington County), Crosswicks Creek in North Hanover (Burlington County), Oswego Creek in Bass River (Burlington County), the Mullica River near Batsto (Burlington County), Great Egg Harbor River (Atlantic County) and Maurice River (Cumberland County). Wells were either at or near record lows in Cumberland, Hunterdon and Sussex Counties. Shallow wells in the southeast part of Morris County were showing strain. Water level on Lake Hopatcong (Morris/Sussex County) was three feet below normal and some smaller boat slips were dry. Farmers stated that the winter wheat crop was struggling. They expected a reduced yield. One stated that this was the driest the fields in February have been in his 49 years of farming. Christmas tree farms were also suffering as were other evergreens at nurseries. Irrigation ponds were well below normal (3 to 4 feet) for February. Another result of the drought was increased bear sightings and nuisance calls in the northwest part of the state.The Delaware River Basin Commission, which oversees water supply throughout the Delaware River Basin declared a "drought" on December 3rd when the supply of water in the New York City reservoir system dropped below a designated level for early December. A drought emergency was declared by the commission on December 18th. Both triggered reductions in the amount of water released from the reservoirs into the Delaware River and the amount diverted out of the Delaware River Basin to New York City and New Jersey. Diversions to New York City dropped from 800 million gallons a day to 520 million gallons a day. Diversions to northern New Jersey through the Delaware and Raritan Canal was reduced to 65 million gallons a day from 100 million gallons a day. The emergency declaration gave the commission the power to restrict the amount of water suppliers could draw from the basin. It gave the commission the authority to take water from municipal reservoirs to maintain river levels. It could also call for water releases from federal, state and privately owned reservoirs. Water from Lake Nockamixon, the F.E. Walter Reservoir and Lake Wallenpaupack could be used to maintain river levels. All of these bodies of water are in Pennsylvania. They were last used for this purpose in the 1960s. The releases help protect the riverbank and aquatic life and also prevents salt water from flowing up the Delaware River. Salt water intrusion causes corrosion problems for industries and increases water treatment costs for municipalities that depend on the river for their water supply. Maintaining river levels are also important for groundwater reserves that are recharged by the river itself, especially in southern New Jersey. The salt front along the Delaware River was farther upstream than it normally is during February. The emergency declaration also gives the commission the power to request that utilities and other companies that use more than one million gallons of water a day to prepare contingency plans to use less water and submit the plans to the commission. At both the Atlantic City Marina (0.56 inches) and the International Airport (0.74 inches), it was the driest February on record. In Trenton, the monthly precipitation total of 0.67 inches was 2.12 inches below normal. It was also the driest meteorological winter on record at the Atlantic City International Airport as only 4.66 inches of precipitation fell. Other winter precipitation totals included 5.69 inches (3.69 inches below normal) in Trenton and 3.60 inches (6.01 inches below normal) at the Marina within Atlantic City.