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Soil moisture level above average for much of southern Alberta

Apr 28, 2017 | 10:03 AM

 SOUTHERN ALBERTA – Farmers across southern Alberta are likely enjoying the wet weather – despite the grey skies that come with it – and the news keeps getting better for them.

Ralph Wright, manager of Agro-Meteorological Applications and Modelling with Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, says soil moisture reserves are already well above normal for most of the province for this time of year.

The Medicine Hat area is seeing the best numbers in the southern part of Alberta, with soil moisture levels trending to one in 50-year highs. To the west of us, particularly as you move past Highway 2, they’re seeing six to 10 and even 15-year highs.

The central part of southern Alberta, encompassing Taber and Lethbridge, is the only region where the levels are down, with three to five year lows.

That said, Wright believes the outlook is still relatively positive for the areas that are below average.

“Southern Alberta’s wet season is just about to begin,” he explained. “Typically, that starts in early April in the far south-western reaches of that area, and starts growing eastwards, and by May and June, those are your wettest months. So, your wet season is ahead of you yet.

Wright pointed out that the western part of southern Alberta was facing concerns over an impending drought around this time last year, until rain in mid May washed those worries away.

“We see these swings from wet to dry and dry to wet, and I always say, the weather that we’ve had over the last couple weeks or months is no real good indication of what the weather’s going to be like going forward. Beyond about seven days, the weather forecasts aren’t that reliable,” Wright added.

When asked about the significant swings in soil moisture levels as you move across the province, Wright noted that it’s actually somewhat surprising that we aren’t seeing even more extremes.

“What’s unusual this year in Alberta, is I’ve never seen soil moisture reserves so high across so wide of an area,” stated Wright. “And actually, the driest areas of the province right now – and they’re not actually that dry – would be the central parts of southern Alberta, as well as the northern tip of the Peace Region.”

For those frustrated with the unpredictability of it all, Wright pointed out that Alberta Agriculture has launched a new tool, weatherdata.ca (http://agriculture.alberta.ca/acis/), which gives you an up-to-date overview of weather conditions, dating back to 1961 – something he noted could come in very handy for farmers or those whose livelihoods depend on the weather.