This past January was the driest on record for the Alberni Valley, says amateur weather enthusiast Chris Alemany.
Alemany, who operates alberniweather.ca, said January 2025 is "likely to be the driest ever recorded at the Alberni airport and among the driest in the Alberni Valley over the past century."
The Environment Canada weather station at the Alberni Valley Regional Airport this month received just 60 millimetres of rain, or one quarter of the usual 250 mm that is normal for January.
"The next closest in the records is January 2014 with 100 millimetres," Alemany said. "Temperatures were average for the month."
The dry month continues a trend of the past few years where the Alberni Valley has seen less precipitation during its rainy season, which generally occurs from October through January, he said.
The Jan. 31-Feb. 2 weekend brought winter weather—and an estimated 10 centimetres of snow in some regions—to the Alberni Valley to start February but Alemany does not expect to see a recovery in rainfall totals in the spring.
"The patterns have changed," he added.
"It's much harder to predict now based on the past climate. The best we can do is compare to the past and be prepared for anything in the future."
The weather station has operated at the airport since 1995 and according to Alemany gives values that are consistent with measurements taken at historic stations in Beaver Creek and Robertson Creek in the last century.
