Local lake levels remaining near capacity despite lack of recent rain

LOPEZ LAKE, Calif. - Despite a lack of rain over the past several months, lake levels on the Central Coast remain near capacity at a handful of reservoirs.

In San Luis Obispo County, Lopez Lake is currently at 91.6 percent, an extremely impressive amount considering the the region has gone without significant precipitation for many months.

"Since July, we've only received, five inches of rain. so the fact that it's still at 92% is really a great, great thing," said Craig Duprey, Lopez Lake Supervising Park Ranger. "Without any more significant rain, we'll probably stay in the 90%, through part of the summer. We still have part of January, and then February and March, so there's potential still that the lake could reach capacity."

The high water mark is a reminder of the past two winters when record-setting rain help refill Lopez Lake from an all-time low mark of 22% capacity in December 2023 to more than 100% just four months later.

"Having the lake at near full capacity is great for the water in the Five Cities," said Duprey. "It is a domestic water source for the Five Cities and also from a recreation standpoint, the lake is much more usable when it's in the 90% range."

Also in San Luis Obispo County, Salinas Reservoir, also known as Santa Margarita Lake, is also still near its capacity at 87.1 percent.

Further north at Lake Nacimiento, which is owned at operated by Monterey County, it's a little bit of a different story with Monterey County Water Resources Agency reporting the lake is currently at at 52 percent of capacity, while nearby San Antonio Lake is in better shape at 70 percent capacity.

In Santa Barbara County, Cachuma Lake is also holding strong, close to its capacity limit at 90.1 percent as of Monday morning.

In northern Ventura County, the Ventura County Public Works Department is reporting Lake Casitas, located just south of Carpinteria is at 95.8 percent capacity.