With one month left in what are California’s three wettest months of the year, the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada is at 27 percent of average for the start of February, said the state Department of Water Resources. The snowpack typically produces 30 percent of California’s water supply, including water used to irrigate crops, as it melts during the spring and early summer.
“The snow survey today shows water content far below average for this time of year,” said Fred Gehrke, chief of the state snow survey program. “Today’s measurements indicate an anemic snowpack to date, but there is still the possibility of a wet February and March.” The director of the state Department of Water Resources, Karla Nemeth, said California has the most variable weather of any state. “It’s vital that water conservation efforts remain consistent, regardless of the year’s precipitation,” she said.
California endured a five-year drought that was punctuated by exceptionally high precipitation last year. One result is that total storage in 154 reservoirs tracked by the state is 6 percent above average for this time of the year. Precipitation during December, the start of the wet season, was paltry, but things improved in January. The survey of the snowpack statewide found that the snow contained the equivalent of 4.9 inches of water, or 27 percent of the Feb. 1 average.
The weekly Drought Monitor said 44 percent of California was in moderate or severe drought, the first two levels in its four-stage rating of conditions. The most severe conditions were in Southern California, including part of the agricultural Central Valley.