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Wednesday’s top of the scroll: Big Sierra snowpack won’t slake California’s thirst; Accumulation isn’t enough to make up for the last three dry years

Posted by: Maven on March 31, 2010 at 8:47 am

creekFrom the Fresno Bee:

“The Sierra snowpack is hefty. Waterfalls are starting to thunder in Yosemite Valley. A spring storm adds to the bounty. It’s time to celebrate the end of the state’s three-year drought. Right?

Wrong. The El Niño-powered winter apparently was not a drought buster — even though some reservoirs may fill up and rainfall totals are above average in two-thirds of California’s major cities, including Fresno.

Here’s the reality check: State officials expect only about 80% of average snowmelt will find its way into rivers and reservoirs this spring. The dry Sierra landscape will absorb the rest.

“We needed a snowpack about 120% of average to make up for the last three years,” said Maury Roos, a hydrologist for the state Department of Water Resources. “We’re somewhere around 100%.”

State officials will announce snowpack numbers Thursday, which is considered the end of the snow season. … “

Continue reading from the Fresno Bee by clicking here.

March 31, 2010 · Filed Under Drought, Weather & Snowpack

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