Drought in New Jersey, May 1 to 31, 2002

New Jersey entered May 2002 with a drought emergency in effect for the entire state with mandatory watering restrictions in place. Water usage statewide was down about 5 to 10 percent. May 2002 was the third straight month of either average or wetter than normal precipitation for the state. The preliminary statewide average precipitation total for the month of May was 4.22 inches. Normal is 4.30 inches. In spite of improving conditions, the long run of below normal precipitation was still taking its toll on the state, especially the southern half. On May 31st, groundwater levels in the southern half of the state still averaged about 5 feet below normal. Half of the ponds in the Mullica River Basin went dry over the winter. Pond levels in Absecon (Atlantic County) were still below normal. The disappearance of the ponds was expected to have a negative impact on the breeding of frogs and the endangered swamp pink flower. It was expected that only the main Pine Barrens rivers will contain enough water for canoeing and kayaking during the summer months. In the northern part of the state, a couple of fishing contests were canceled and the moratorium for new connections to the municipal water authority in Mendham Township (Morris County) remained in effect. The boat ramps to the Spruce Run Reservoir were not usable because water levels were too low. The Monmouth Beach (Monmouth County) Two River Water Reclamation Authority sent a letter to its township and neighboring towns that its purified effluent water was available for use. Nursery and landscaping business throughout the state was off by about 20 percent. Groups were still prohibited from holding fundraising car washes. On the positive side, surface reservoirs in the northern half of the state continued to recover. They rose from 60 percent to 85 percent of capacity by the end of the month and were only about 10 percent below normal. The contingency plans to draw 25 million gallons of water a day from Lake Hopatcong starting in the summer and transfer it into the Rockaway River for the Boonton Reservoir was dropped. In addition, the combination of holding back releases and normal springtime precipitation filled Lake Hopatcong to capacity. Even the Spruce Run Reservoir (Hunterdon County) reached over 60 percent of capacity during the month. On May 1st it was at 47.9 percent of capacity. The Round Valley Reservoir (Hunterdon County) was at 94 percent of capacity. Only two percent of the spring trout stocking was displaced. Normal springtime precipitation gave farmers enough moisture for their crops. The Delaware River Basin Commission, which oversees water supply throughout the Delaware River Basin declared a "drought" on December 3, 2001 when the supply of water in the New York City reservoir system dropped below a designated level for early December. The commission declared a drought emergency on December 18, 2001. Both triggered additional 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. 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. 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. On May 1st, the salt front along the Delaware River was three miles farther upstream than its normal May position. 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. The New York City Reservoirs which feed the Delaware River increased from 62.5 percent of capacity to 81.2 percent of capacity on June 1st. Normal for June 1st is 99.5 percent of capacity. For the first time since last October, reservoir storage was within the normal range. Under law, the Delaware River Basin Commission drought emergency declaration could not be lifted until reservoir levels remained 40 billion gallons above the drought watch level for 30 days. This was not achieved as of May 31st. But, by May 31st, the salt front on the Delaware River was three miles farther downstream than normal. For the month streamflow on the Delaware River averaged 150 percent of normal. On a county weighted average, May monthly precipitation totals ranged from 3.4 inches in Monmouth and Cape May Counties to 5.5 inches in Hunterdon and Sussex Counties. The least precipitation fell across the eastern part of the state, while the heaviest precipitation fell in the northwest part of the state. Monthly precipitation totals were 2.76 inches at the Atlantic City International Airport and 4.70 inches in Trenton.