Water Level in Lake Powell

In the latter half of the decade the lake level began to rebound. Significant amounts of snowfall over the winter of 2010–2011 meant more water for the lake. Regional snowfall in the spring of 2012, on the other hand, was abnormally low, and inflow to Lake Powell did not begin to increase in May 2012 as it had in previous years. Since 2012, snow- and rainfall totals have been abnormally low as the region suffered through persistent drought. Inflow to Lake Powell has been minimal, and by April 2015, the reservoir stood at 42 percent of capacity. Droughts in this region are not unusual; however, global warming is expected to make droughts more severe in the future.