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'More than our reservoirs could hold': Arizona's record-breaking snowfall has experts optimistic

Experts measured roughly three times the normal amount of snow melt after last winter, refilling reservoirs and aquifers across the state.

PHOENIX — Arizona may be stuck with scorching heat and a lack of monsoon moisture, but one of the wettest winters in recent memory has experts optimistic about the state of our water.

Multiple monitoring stations in Arizona's High Country recorded record-breaking levels of snowfall and saw snowpack persist as late as April. The water coming off of that melting snow has bolstered reservoirs and refilled lakes across the state.

Salt River Project (SRP) measured three times the median amount of snow water from this winter as compared to a more typical year.

"It's probably the third wettest in the last 30 years," said SRP Senior Hydrologist Tim Skarupa. "By the end of April 1, both the Salt and Verde reservoir systems were 100% full."

Related: 'The highest snowpack we've had in 30 years': Winter storms benefit AZ water systems

As of July 10, Roosevelt Lake is 95% full, and Bartlett Lake is 86% full. Both saw significant increases in their water levels in late March and early April, according to the United States Geological Survey. Although Lake Powell is only roughly 40% full, its water levels are up 45.20 feet from just last year.

The amount of snow wasn't the only thing impressive about last winter. Researchers were surprised to see how long it stuck around.

"April 1 was the largest snowpack we've ever seen. Typically, the Verde is completely melted out by the end of March. So all that snow in a typical year would have been gone," Skarupa explained. "To have it that deep that late in the season... It was pretty amazing."

But the current systems don't catch everything. 

"We had to release a lot of water, because the water inflow from that tremendous snowpack was more than our reservoirs could hold," Skarupa said.

SRP plans to enlarge Bartlett Dam, but the plan is still in its beginning stages. In the meantime, most of that water flowing through the Salt and Verde rivers is going back into Arizona's aquifers. 

Experts estimate that roughly half of the 750,000 acre feet of water released made it back into the ground to recharge our aquifers. That groundwater could be enough to carry Arizona through a dry season. Not only will residents be able to tap into that groundwater, but Skarupa said that it will increase stream flow throughout the summer.

Although the numbers are encouraging, experts caution that we're not out of the drought yet. SRP stressed that the organization is hoping for the best and preparing for the worst. Ongoing conservation efforts have made an impact, but not everyone has a renewable water supply.

As Skarupa put it: "It's important live within the means of, you know, a desert environment."

And one record-breaking winter isn't going to change that.

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