{"id":5907,"date":"2020-12-30T11:23:06","date_gmt":"2020-12-30T19:23:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/saveourwater-local.local\/december-2020-snow-survey\/"},"modified":"2024-07-02T11:53:44","modified_gmt":"2024-07-02T18:53:44","slug":"december-2020-snow-survey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/saveourwater.com\/es\/december-2020-snow-survey\/","title":{"rendered":"December 2020 Snow Survey"},"content":{"rendered":"

Este art\u00edculo no est\u00e1 traducido en este momento. Recomendamos usar Google Translate.<\/mark>\n\nSACRAMENTO, Calif<\/strong>. \u2013 The Department of Water Resources (DWR) today conducted the first Phillips Station snow survey of the season. The manual survey recorded 30.5 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 10.5 inches, which is 93 percent of the January 1 average for this location. The snow water equivalent measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack and is a key component of DWR\u2019s water supply forecast. While conditions were positive at Phillips Station, statewide the snowpack is just 52% of average for this date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe snow survey results reflect California\u2019s dry start to the water year and provide an important reminder that our state\u2019s variable weather conditions are made more extreme by climate change,\u201d said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. \u201cWe still have several months left to bring us up to average, but we should prepare now for extended dry conditions. The Department, along with other state agencies and local water districts, is prepared to support communities should conditions remain dry.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On average, the Sierra snowpack supplies about 30 percent of California\u2019s water needs and the snowpack is an important factor in determining how DWR manages the state\u2019s water resources. Its natural ability to store water is why the Sierra snowpack is often referred to as\u00a0California’s \u201cfrozen reservoir.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As spring sets in, the snowpack begins to melt. Water that\u2019s not absorbed into the ground, called \u201crunoff,\u201d trickles into mountain streams, which feed rivers and eventually aqueducts and reservoirs, where it can be stored for use throughout the dry season. Climate change is affecting California\u2019s snowpack, however, as more precipitation falls as rain and less as snow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More telling than a survey at a single location are DWR\u2019s electronic readings from 130 stations placed throughout the State. Measurements indicate that statewide, the snowpack\u2019s SWE is 5 inches, or 52 percent of the December 30 average.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday\u2019s survey brought a first glimpse of how the state\u2019s snowpack is shaping up, but there is a lot of winter still ahead,\u201d said Sean de Guzman, chief of DWR\u2019s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Section. \u201cWhile the dry conditions during late summer and fall have led to a below average snowpack, it is still encouraging to have the amount of snow we already have with two of the three typically wettest months still to come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DWR conducts five media-oriented snow surveys at Phillips Station each winter near the first of each month, January through April and, if necessary, May.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additional Resources<\/h3>\n\n\n\n