U.S. Climate Report Forecasts Shrinking Snowpacks

Snowpacks in Oregon, Idaho, Washington and California and are expected be much smaller by mid-century if greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, according to federal projections released Friday. The Fourth National Climate Assessment, completed once every four years, asserts that the mild winter of 2014-15 may have foreshadowed the future. “As a harbinger, the unusually low Western U.S. snowpack of 2015 may become the norm,” according to the report.