Dry run: Rains unlikely to erase deficits
No crisis yet, but rains have been scarce lately.
The semi-annual white-water release from Lake Nockamixon in Bucks County, schedule for the first weekend in November, has been canceled.
In making the announcement Thursday, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, cited the obvious cause – lack of rain.
In the 30-day period that ended Wednesday, Bucks County had only about a half-inch of rain, according to the Middle Atlantic River Forecast Center, or 20 percent of normal.
Chester County's total was under 10 percent of the average. Counties across the river, have fared far better. Burlington was at 80 percent, and Camden, 78.
But half of Burlington remains in a state of "moderate drought," according to the weekly updated posted Thursday by the U.S. Drought Monitor, a government-academic partnership, as does the northern half of Philadelphia and southern Bucks County.
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has placed most of New Jersey under a "drought watch," and its Keystone counterpart has the same designation for Philly and Chester and Delaware Counties.
River and creek levels predictably are low. The Delaware River at Burlington, for example, stood at 0.67 feet Thursday afternoon; flood stage is 9.3.
The Brandywine at Chadds Ford was at 1.72; flood stage is 9.
On the plus side, that would tend to mitigate flooding potential should a soaking rain materialize.
That isn't going to happen in the forecast-able future. The outlook is for showers Friday and Friday night, but with rain totals in the half-inch range.
Fortunately for the plant life, in the absence of rain the overnight dew has been quite generous.