CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Choke Canyon and Lake Corpus Christi are at the lowest combined level heading into May since the dam at Choke Canyon was built in the early 1980's.
Right now, our combined lake levels are just over 28 percent. If that number drops below 20 percent, it would put us into Stage 3 Water Restrictions.
"So a big part of what is important for our water shed is for us to get really large rain events," Corpus Christi Water COO Drew Molly said.
He said there are factors that contribute to why our area is experiencing low water levels despite having a near average rainfall this winter in Corpus Christi.
"The watershed is certainty under some abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions and we're just not seeing the intensity in that water shed to help us out with the reservoir levels," he said.
3NEWS Chief Meteorologist Alan Holt was able to help breakdown the science behind it all. Holt said that up north, closer to the Highway 99 corridor west of San Antonio, is where he's noticing a large impact.
"Heartier drought," he said. "I think that's one of the contributing factors to the lack of water locally in Choke Canyon and Lake Corpus Christi."
Holt said that if this summer is anything like last year's, the impact could be long-lasting.
"You could be looking anywhere from a six to a 10 percent drop in the levels from what they are right now," he said.
Which could mean tighter water usage rules down the road.
"So it's possible by the end of summer we're close to that 20 percent mark, which would mean stage 3 restrictions," he said.
It's a possibility that Molly said only time will tell.
"But we will be very clear with our customers and our community to when we start seeing those dates materialize," Molly said.
3NEWS reached out to Corpus Christi City Manager Peter Zanoni, who said that while there are no discussions to pull that trigger on Stage 3 Water Restrictions, his team will be meeting with CCW to get more information on when they get to that point.