What a difference a month makes in the Sierra. A month ago, the Northern Sierra snowpack was only 68% of normal, despite above-average rainfall. But, after a much snowier January, it’s jumped to 144%. Department of Water Resources Information Officer, Ted Thomas, says the water content at the Highway 50 Phillips measuring station, one of eight in the North State, has a water content of 28 inches. It was just 6 inches in early January…
The Department says the annual precipitation at the 8 stations is 50 inches. But that total was already surpassed on January 20th. That’s the best measure for this time of year since 1997. January is typically the wettest and snowiest month of the season. And Thomas says February is also off to a promising start…
Thomas says there are still some areas of the state struggling with the effects of the drought. He says there won’t be a true picture of the water supply until after the spring snowpack measurements. April is normally considered the most critical one. Meanwhile, the Central Sierra snowpack is now at 173% of normal, it’s 200% for the Southern range.
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