He said the crux of the drought problem is “the deficit.” On average, a year of rainfall is missing over the three-and one-half-year drought statewide, and about a two-year deficit in the San Joaquin Valley. The rain will not be easily made up, he says, considering that much of what falls is lost.

“We get rain, but we can’t catch it. It goes out to the Pacific and I don’t see any dents in the hydrologic drought.”

Meadows says it will be difficult to recharge aquifers.

Steady rains needed

Asked what it would take to cut the length of the drought, he said more steady rains – “not monsoonal, not three inches at a time” – could help.

He said the El Niño conditions bring warmer temperatures, the potential for more hail, and a chance of flooding and soil erosion.

“Despite common thought, flooding can occur during a drought,” Meadows said.