Ebro reservoir rises 3% amid December cold and heavy snow

Ebro reservoir rises 3% in three days as cold hits Spain

December cold is nothing new. What is notable is that the Ebro reservoir has gained more than 3% in water in just three days, approaching the ten-year average, whereas last year it was nearly empty at this time. In the same week that Zaragoza sees highs of 6°C and lows of 1°C, Reinosa wakes up under snow and the northern Pyrenees accumulate 120 centimeters in 48 hours; meanwhile, the northern plateau has struggled with muddy fields for two years. Water and ice, driven by the same weather system.

Snowfall totals and locations

Data from the current weather event are significant: 120 centimeters accumulated on the northern slopes of the Pyrenees in 48 hours, with more snow forecast. Along the Cantabrian coast, precipitation is coming from the north after arriving from the northwest the previous day, tapering off in Cantabria by late day while intensifying in Asturias and León. Reinosa proge up covered in snow. The same is true for Barruelo in the mountains of Palencia.

The hydrological impact is the least discussed aspect. The Ebro reservoir has risen more than 3% in three days and is nearing the average of the last ten years, according to basin monitoring. Last year, at this time, it was nearly empty. And there is still more to come as the surrounding snow melts.

Temperatures that defy the narrative

There is an ongoing debate over whether this cold is normal. One group argues there is nothing extraordinary: 5 or 6 degrees in December, or sub-zero temperatures mid-month, have always been seen. Others recall that in a village in Teruel, 30 years ago, cars had to be kept in garages because temperatures dropped to -15 at dawn, and that between 2000 and 2012, it was common to drive home from a business dinner in -4 or -5°C weather. In Murcia, conversely, highs of 12°C were expected, a temperature not seen in many years.

The contrast worsens when looking south. While half the country shivers, a storm warning has been issued for the Mediterranean, which one meteorologist described as an "apocalypse," with rainfall that could exceed an entire year's worth in just two weeks—potentially worse than the DANA (a high-altitude isolated depression) that hit Valencia.
The same Peninsula, two opposing catastrophes.

Why December cold has become a political issue

The episode has peine the climate change debate with a circular logic that is becoming tiresome. Four days ago, there was drought and global warming; now, a cold wave. Those who deny the phenomenon use it as proof that it is all a business, calling it climate terrorism, ironically despite the fact that records exist for anyone to check. Those who defend the science respond that a cold winter does not contradict the underlying trend, and that the alteration of precipitation patterns is precisely what causes both droughts and floods in the same year.

The confusing detail is that both sides are partially right. Records from the eighties show harsher winters, yes. And those from the last decade show a more erratic precipitation pattern, too. What is missing is a single data point that explains why the Ebro reservoir rises 3% in three days while the northern countryside has been unable to traverse its fields for two years.

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Given these circumstances, it is reasonable to expect the episode to resolve in water, not in headlines. The snow from the Pyrenees will end up in the Ebro, the Mediterranean storm will hit where it may, and the thermometer will return to typical January levels. What will not return is the feeling that something is out of balance: a country debating whether it is cold in December while the reservoir supplying half the basin rises three points in 72 hours.