Positive Start to Western Mountain Snowpack Season

Most of the Western Mountain ranges so far are noting above normal snowpack to build water supplies for the new year. USDA meteorologist, Brad Rippey, says the first three months of the snowpack season have provided a good start for the vast majority of the West. He continues

Rippey: "It all got started with the very wet Northwestern October. Unfortunately, that came mostly in the for of rain, not snow. But since then, we've done a good job of making up for the lack of early snow accumulations. There are only a few areas in the West that do not have above average snow pack. That includes California where we are still seeing more warm storms than white storms and then also parts of Arizona and New Mexico despite some recent improvements snow pack is lacking a bit there. Then the third area is the northern most Rockies right near the Canadian border. Again we had all that October rain in the Northern Rockies — we've had some snow since but it has been very powdery and the liquid content has not been high. All of the reminder of the West is looking great in terms of snowpack, which has chipped away at some of the long-term drought that we have seen piling up over the years — especially in California."

The run off of mountain snow feeds Western reservoirs for irrigation and municipal water use in the spring and summer months.