Dry conditions cramp New Mexico water supply forecast

New Mexico’s water resources could feel the pinch later this year thanks to dismal snowpack and a strengthening weather pattern in the Pacific Ocean that typically brings drier weather.

The National Weather Service in Albuquerque issued an update Friday on the water supply outlook.

Senior hydrologist Royce Fontenot says drought has expanded across New Mexico in recent weeks. Severe conditions now cover 60 percent of the state.

He said some areas, particularly in the eastern plains, have not seen any moisture for the last 100 days or so.

He also said snowpack levels for all basins are well below normal and that will affect water supplies going forward.

Forecasters estimate New Mexico would need as much as 270 percent of normal precipitation in some areas to recover by the spring.