State Survey Finds Bountiful Water Supply In Sierra Snowpack

PHILLIPS STATION (CBS SF) -- February storms that dumped historic levels of snow in the Sierra, burying some mountainous areas under hundreds of inches, have led to a bounty of water to carry California's cities and farms through the summer months.

That was the good news delivered Thursday when the Department of Water Resources conducted its fifth and final snowpack survey. The manual survey recorded 47 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent (SWE) of 27.5 inches, which is 188 percent of average for this location for Phillips Station.

"California's cities and farms can expect ample water supplies this summer," said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. "But it's critical that it's put to use replenishing groundwater basins and storage reservoirs for the next inevitable drought."

It was a stark contrast to four years ago when then-Gov. Jerry Brown came to Phillips Station and found it barren of any measureable snow amid a historic drought.

April 1 is typically the height of the year's snow water content. However, it is not until late spring and early summer when the intense sunshine becomes the key factor in snow melt and run-off.

"2019 has been an extremely good year in terms of snowpack," said Jon Ericson, DWR Chief of the Division of Flood Management. "Based on our surveys, we are seeing a very dense, cold snowpack that will continue to produce run-off into late summer."

The 2019 snowpack reached its peak on March 31 and is the fifth largest on record, based on more than 250 manual snow surveys conducted each month by the California Cooperative Snow Survey Program.

Both rain and the snowpack runoff feed California's reservoirs. The state's largest six reservoirs currently hold between 96 percent (San Luis) and 128 percent (Melones) of their historical averages for this date.

Lake Shasta, California's largest surface reservoir, is 108 percent of its historical average and sits at 93 percent of capacity.