March to September 2002 Precipitation

Precipitation totals for the February to June period and the March to September period were ranked for select locations in the province and reveal two extremes in precipitation observed in the province this year (Table 1). Monthly precipitation totals for various periods were ranked from highest to lowest for the period of record since 1912 (where available).

Areas south of High River show that precipitation was near the highest on record for the March to September 2002 period. Seven of eight locations (except Brooks) indicated that the precipitation this year (March 1 to September 30) is in the highest eight years on record. The same trend is evident in the early portion of the year (February to June) where four of the eight locations indicated that the recorded precipitation was the highest or second highest on record.

In areas north of Calgary, precipitation totals for the March to September 2002 period fall off dramatically. Two locations, Edmonton and Lloydminster recorded the lowest precipitation since 1912 in the March to September time frame. Three other locations, Red Deer, Slave Lake and Peace River, showed that precipitation this year (March to September) ranked in the lowest 10 years on record.