Water Supply Outlook for Alberta
March 2008
February 2008 Precipitation |
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Most of the southern and central plains areas of the province recorded much below normal precipitation,
with the exceptions of the Medicine Hat, Cold Lake-Lloydminster areas and an area northeast of Red Deer, which
recorded above to much above normal precipitation. The mountains and foothills generally recorded
below normal precipitation except for the southwestern corner of Alberta, Banff and the Edson-Hinton areas,
which recorded above to much above normal precipitation. Northern Alberta recorded generally below
normal to normal precipitation with the exception of much of northwestern Alberta, which recorded much above
normal precipitation (Figure 1).
February precipitation totals are illustrated in
Figure 2.
 
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Winter Precipitation (November 1, 2007 to February 29, 2008) |
Precipitation in the southern and central plains areas of the province recorded much below normal precipitation except for the Cypress Hills area south of Medicine Hat, which recorded above normal precipitation. The mountains and foothills generally recorded below normal to normal precipitation with the exception of mountains of the Waterton Park area in southwestern Alberta and one point in the Banff area, which recorded above normal precipitation. Northern Alberta recorded below normal to normal precipitation except for Fort Chipewyan and the Grande Prairie area, which recorded much below normal precipitation, and Cold Lake, which recorded much above normal precipitation (Figure 3). Winter precipitation totals are illustrated in (Figure 4). |
Fall Precipitation (September 1 to October 31, 2007) |
Below to much below normal precipitation was recorded in most of the province
(Figure 5).
Above to much above normal precipitation was recorded in many mountain and foothill
locations of the Banff-Pincher Creek area, in the Milk River-Cypress Hills area, and in
the far north of the province that includes areas north of High Level and the
Fort Chipewyan area. Some areas of the Upper Smoky and Athabasca River basins
recorded normal to above normal precipitation. Fall precipitation totals are illustrated
in Figure 6.
  A map of soil moisture in the province as estimated by Alberta Agriculture can be seen here . |
Long-Lead Precipitation Outlook |
Environment Canada's long-lead forecast for Alberta issued on February 28, 2008
for the March through May 2008 period is for above normal precipitation throughout Alberta,
except normal for southern plains areas, and below normal for the southeastern corner of Alberta.
Temperatures for this period are forecast to be below normal. The long-lead forecast issued on
March 1, 2008 for June through August 2008 is for above normal temperatures.
Precipitation for this period is expected mostly to be above normal, except for northwestern and west central Alberta,
where it is forecast to be below normal to normal.
Canada's long-lead precipitation outlook is available from their website located at:
http://weatheroffice.ec.gc.ca/saisons/index_e.html.
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For technical enquires about this web page please contact Alberta Environment - Environmental Management Water Management Operations Branch at AENV-WebWS@gov.ab.ca