Although some rain is still forecast across Western Mexico in the coming days, the 2022 temporada de lluvias (rainy season) will soon reach its conclusion.
Thankfully, the rain god Tlaloc has been kind this year, spreading abundant precipitation, and filling many of the Jalisco’s water basins to either full or near capacity. According to the National Water Commission (Conagua), eight of the state’s 22 dams are at 100 percent of their capacity, while Lake Chapala is expected to close out the season almost three-quarters full—mirroring last year’s level at this time.
The good news is that the Calderon Dam, a major supplier of H2O to the Guadalajara metropolitan area, is at 103 percent capacity, more or less the same as in October last year. Hopefully, this means that the severe water shortages experienced dung the April-June dry season of 2021, when the Calderon Dam’s levels dropped to alarmingly low levels, won’t be repeated in 2023.