Posted: Tue, 11 Oct 2011 10:26 AM - 14,644 Readers

By: Editorial Board

Well, that was nice.

This weekend's rain was sweet. And the cool temperatures that came with it served as a reminder that there actually is a season much of the rest of the nation knows as fall. (It also helped us forget about University of Texas football team's blowout loss Saturday to Oklahoma, but the less said about that the better.)

So savor how it felt to see good rain and feel cool temperatures for a moment longer. ... OK, done.

The weekend's rain, as nice as it was, and as much as it might green things up for a couple of weeks, was no drought-buster, as you know. Camp Mabry received a couple of inches of rain but remains about 15 inches behind the yearly average. No more rain is in the forecast for the next week or so, and the highs for the next several days are expected to be above average for this time of year.

John Nielsen-Gammon, a professor of atmospheric sciences at Texas A&M University who serves as the Texas state climatologist, said late last month that the current drought could last another five to 15 years. The key word in that sentence is "could." Nielsen-Gammon puts the chance of the drought persisting another five years around 25 percent.

"This is looking more and more like a multiyear drought," he said Sept. 29.

The word coming out of a gathering of climatologists and weather experts in Fort Worth last week is that the current drought will last at least another year, thanks to the development of a new La Niña in the central Pacific. Historical data show that colder-than-usual water temperatures in the Pacific contribute to drought in Texas and the Southwest.

"Because Texas needs substantially above-normal rain to recover, and it's not likely to get it, I expect that most of the state will still be in major drought through next summer," " Nielsen-Gammon said.

So don't expect Austin's Stage 2 water restrictions, which limit watering to once a week and impose a $475 fine on violators, to be lifted anytime soon. Austin's water utility is offering rebates to replace St. Augustine with drought-tolerant grass or native plants, or to add areas to your lawn that don't need watering. The deadline to apply is Friday. Since watering lawns is one area where a change could conserve a lot of water, we ask you to consider the city's offer to see whether it's the right choice for you and whether you qualify.

We think we've learned not to take water for granted and that we will continue to conserve water even after this drought ends — whenever in the next decade that will be. Yet as we urged last week, and urge again, the city needs to develop and implement a comprehensive drought plan to better conserve water, reduce the risk of wildfire and protect our public parks.

Meanwhile, we will cherish the rain we do get, and will always hope for more. As we know from this weekend, it is such sweet relief, isn't it?