Shoals remains in drought; rainfall still below normal

At first glance, the ocean of green grass and trees blanketing the Shoals makes it appear the region has emerged from a drought that parched lawns and farm crops last summer.

Maps that display the drought status for Alabama, however, paint a different picture.

In the latest U.S. Drought Monitor report, most of the Shoals is displayed in yellow, light brown or dark brown on the maps, indicating the region remains in a mild to severe drought.

The drought ranges from mild in northwest Lauderdale County to severe in the extreme eastern portions of the county. The remainder of the region is in a moderate drought

So far this year, rainfall at the Northwest Alabama Regional Airport in Muscle Shoals is more then 6 inches below normal.

Michael Coyne, meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service office in Huntsville, said that while the drought has moderated in recent weeks, it is far from over.

"We've been in a pattern where we receive rain about every seven days which has kept everything green and has been a blessing for the farmers," Coyne said. "If that cycle is interrupted and we go two to three weeks without rain, the farmers will be in just as bad of shape as they were last summer."

Rainfall this year has been sufficient to keep vegetation green, which masks the severity of the drought, he said.

"Everything looks nice on the surface, but the ground water table is still far below normal," he said. "Even with normal rainfall, it's probably going to take at least a year or two to recharge the ground water table."

Gil Francis, a spokesman for the Tennessee Valley Authority, said when it does rain, much of the runoff soaks into the ground instead of draining into area waterways.

Rainfall runoff in the Tennessee Valley is 65 percent of normal so far this year, Francis said. Rainfall is 80 percent of normal.

Since Oct. 1, hydroelectric generation at TVA's dams has been 46 percent of normal, he said.

The TVA lakes in the Shoals - Wheeler, Wilson and Pickwick - are near normal levels, Francis said. Some of the utility's tributary reservoirs in the eastern portion of the Valley are about 10 feet below normal.

"We're still operating our reservoirs in a water conservation mode," he said. "We need an inch or two of rain every week to operate them in the normal mode. We're still not getting enough rain across the Valley to refill all of our reservoirs and keep them full."

Coyne said the Tennessee Valley could slip further into a drought this week as the forecast calls for lots of sun and little rain. The next chance of rain in the Shoals is Friday.

Dennis Sherer can be reached at 740-5746 or dennis.sherer@timesdaily.com.