News release
The Department of Water Resources on Friday conducted the April snow survey at Phillips Station. The manual survey recorded 39.5 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 17 inches, which is 70% of average for this location.
The snow water equivalent measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack and is a key component of DWR’s water supply forecast. Statewide, the snowpack is 90% of average for this date. Given the forecast for storms early this week, DWR conducted the in-person snow survey ahead of April 1.
The April measurement is a critical marker for water managers across the state, as it is typically the time when the snowpack reaches its maximum volume and begins to melt. DWR’s water supply forecasts use data from the snowpack to calculate how much snowmelt runoff will eventually make its way into California’s rivers and reservoirs.
While the snowpack has caught up to near normal, broad swaths of Southern California remain exceptionally dry and below average for rainfall. This includes the Los Angeles region, which as of Friday has only received 45% of its average rainfall so far this water year, according to a DWR news release.
“It’s great news that our state’s snowpack has recovered from several weeks of extremely dry conditions in the heart of our winter storm season,” DWR Director Karla Nemeth said in the release. “However, it’s not a wet year across the entire Sierra Nevada. The north has great snowpack, but snowpack is less than average in the central and southern part of the mountain range. That snowpack ultimately flows to the Delta, and the regional disparity affects how much water the State Water Project will be able to deliver.”
On average, California’s snowpack supplies about 30% of California’s water needs. Its natural ability to store water is why California’s snowpack is often referred to as California’s “frozen reservoir.”
“From major storms in November and December to a bone-dry January, then back to major storms in February and March, this year is a lesson in why we can never know for certain what our water picture will look like until we get to the end of our traditional wet season,” Andy Reising, manager of DWR’s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Unit, said in the release.
DWR conducts four or five snow surveys at Phillips Station each winter near the first of each month, January through April and, if necessary, May.
