Drenching rains forecast to pummel California on Wednesday and again over the weekend are poised to be the third and fourth major storms to march through in less than two weeks, raising the prospect of more misery in a season that has already brought flooding, debris flows and power outages to parts of the state. Over the weekend, rescuers scoured rural areas of Sacramento County looking for people trapped in homes or cars.
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The California Department of Water Resources first manual snow survey of the season Tuesday at Phillips Station recorded 55.5 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 17.5 inches, which is 177% of average for the 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 174% of average for this date.
California is expected to see continued rain and snow over the next seven days, with the threat of flooding in parts of California. Conditions so far this season have proven to be strikingly similar to last year when California saw some early rainstorms and strong December snow totals only to have the driest January through March on record.
“The significant Sierra snowpack is good news but unfortunately these same storms are bringing flooding to parts of California,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “This is a prime example of the threat of extreme flooding during a prolonged drought as California experiences more swings between wet and dry periods brought on by our changing climate.”
One year ago, the Phillips survey showed the seventh highest January measurements on record for that location. However, those results were followed by three months of extremely dry conditions and by April 1 of last year, the Phillips survey measurements were the third lowest on record.
More telling than a survey at a single location are DWR’s electronic readings from 130 stations placed throughout the state. Measurements indicate that statewide, the snowpack’s snow water equivalent is 17.1 inches, or 174% of average for January 3.
DWR today conducted the first Phillips Station snow survey of the season. The manual survey recorded 55.5 inches of snow depth & a snow water equivalent of 17.5 inches, which is 177 percent of the January 3 average for this location. pic.twitter.com/0m169UX2xv
— CA – DWR (@CA_DWR) January 3, 2023
“After three consecutive years of drought, the recent series of storms is a good start to the season,” said Jeff Stephenson, water resources manager with the San Diego County Water Authority. “However, we had a similarly strong early winter last year, which did not continue. While the Water Authority and its 24 member agencies have worked and continue to develop diverse water supply sources, there are still opportunities, including rebates, to save more water.”
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Stephenson added that the region has reduced its reliance on imported water supplies, including from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta, which means more of that source is available for other parts of California.
The severity of the current drought makes it important for everyone in San Diego County to take more water-saving actions. Find more ways to save: https://t.co/9NdxuJaoxs #cawater #cadrought pic.twitter.com/jagFayYOvK
— San Diego County Water Authority (@sdcwa) December 13, 2022
The January 2023 manual snow survey results are similar to results in 2013 and 2022 when the January 1 snowpack was at or above average conditions, only for dry weather to set in and lead to drought conditions by the end of the water year (September 30).
In 2013, the first snow survey of the season also provided promising results after a wet December similar to today’s results. However, the following January and February were exceptionally dry, and the water year ended as the driest on record, contributing to a record-breaking drought. In 2022, record-breaking December snowfall was again followed by the driest January through March period on record.
“Big snow totals are always welcome, but we still have a long way to go before the critical April 1 total,” said DWR’s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Unit Manager Sean de Guzman. “It’s always great to be above average this early in the season, but we must be resilient and remember what happened last year. If January through March of 2023 turn out to be similar to last year, we would still end the water year in severe drought with only half of an average year’s snowpack.”
On average, the Sierra snowpack supplies about 30% of California’s water needs and is an important factor in determining how DWR manages the state’s water resources. Its natural ability to store water is why the Sierra snowpack is often referred to as California’s “frozen reservoir.” A below-average snowpack impacts water users across the state, putting further stress on the environment and critical groundwater supplies.
Due to these increasing swings from dramatically wet to dry conditions, Governor Newsom’s recently released “California’s Water Supply Strategy, Adapting to a Hotter, Drier Future” calls for investing in new projects and technologies that will modernize how the state manages water.
“Big snow totals are always welcome, but we still have a long way to go before the critical April 1 total.” – Sean de Guzman, DWR’s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Unit Manager .
–#california #snow #water #cawater #SnowSurvey2023 pic.twitter.com/Hi90uJbSro— CA – DWR (@CA_DWR) January 3, 2023
Current climate research indicates the state will see bigger swings from extreme heat and dry conditions to larger and more powerful storms that deliver temporary large boosts to the state snowpack as well as flood risk.
DWR encourages Californians to visit SaveOurWater.com for water saving tips and information, and to continue to conserve California’s most precious resource, rain or shine. DWR conducts five snow surveys at Phillips Station each winter near the first of each month, January through April and, if necessary, May. The next survey is tentatively scheduled for February 1.
More moisture-packed storms are expected to pay a visit to California during the first week of 2023 following an atmospheric river that dropped a historic amount of rain on the San Francisco Bay area as well as heavy snow in higher elevations on New Year’s Eve. Because of the saturated state of the ground, another atmospheric river during the middle and latter part of the week will lead to more flooding and mudslides in the Golden State, AccuWeather meteorologists warn.
As California enters what is expected to be a fourth year of drought, the State Water Resources Control Board is reviewing a request from environmentalists to suspend Los Angeles Department of Water and Power diversions from Mono Lake in the Eastern Sierra Nevada. In its request, the nonprofit Mono Lake Committee argues that the combination of drought and diversions from streams that feed the lake are exposing the lake bottom near islands that host one of the world’s largest nesting gull populations.
For a second consecutive week, San Diego County will get hit by a pair of back-to-back storms that are part of larger systems that will bring badly needed rain to California’s reservoirs and minimize the risk of wildfires. The polar jet stream has slumped to the south and is guiding storms to the West Coast like a conveyor belt, says the National Weather Service.
As the new year begins, California’s Sierra is closing in on the second-largest snowpack we’ve seen at this time of year in the last two decades, with more snow expected to pummel the mountain range in the coming days. But here’s why it’s far too soon to declare an end to the drought: Last year, we started 2022 with a similar bounty — and then ended the snow season way, way, way below normal.
She’s baaaack! For the past two years, La Niña, the cooling of ocean temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, has wreaked havoc on weather around the globe. Now the World Meteorological Organization expects the phenomenon to return for a third consecutive year, a rare occurrence that forecasters predict could bring wackier-than-usual winter weather to the West, once again.
California, particularly Northern California, was walloped by a major winter rain and snow storm last week and meteorologists expect that high levels of precipitation will continue for at least another week. Despite some damage and at least one death from local flooding and tree-toppling high winds, the storm and the predictions of more to come are welcome relief from what had appeared to be a prolonged drought.
Folsom Lake is letting the water flow while rains pick up across the valley. December has provided higher-than-average precipitation for the capital region giving way to cautious optimism about just how much longer the state will be in a drought. But the rainfall also prompted questions about why, in a drought, dams and reservoirs are letting water out instead of holding it in.
