First snow survey of the season: 97% of average near Echo Summit, 90% of average in Sierra

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) conducted the first manual snow survey of the season at Phillips Station Thursday, and they found 33.5 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 11 inches. The snowpack at this location is 97 percent of average, with the Sierra as a whole at 90 percent of average.

One year ago the snowpack measured at 25.5 inches of snow and was at 80 percent of average. That measurement took place before all of the heavy winter storms experienced in 2019.

Sean de Guzman, Chief of DWR’s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Section, along with Dr. Michael Anderson, DWR’s State Climatologist, conducted the snow survey at Phillips Station on US50 near Sierra-at-Tahoe.

Their purpose is to measure the water content in the snowpack which is a key indicator for the state's water supply. They survey manually five times a year but also survey electronically daily.

“While the series of cold weather storms in November and December has provided a good start to the 2020 snowpack, precipitation in Northern California is still below average for this time of year,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “We must remember how variable California’s climate is and what a profound impact climate change has on our snowpack.”

The Phillips Station snow course is one of more than 260 snow courses across the Sierra Nevada that DWR manually or electronically measures each winter and early spring. Data collected from the monthly snow surveys help determine the amount of water that will melt and run off to state reservoirs during warmer months. The information is critical to the water managers who allocate California’s natural water resources to regions downstream.

“It’s still too early to predict what the remainder of the year will bring in terms of snowpack,” said DeGuzman. “Climate change is altering the balance of rain and snow in California. That is why it is important to maintain our measurements of the snowpack to document the change in addition to having critical information to forecast spring runoff.”

California traditionally receives about 75 percent of its annual precipitation during December, January and February, with the bulk of this precipitation coming from atmospheric rivers. Similar to last year, California experienced a dry start to this water year followed by cold, wet December storms that brought the state up to 74 percent of average annual precipitation for this time of year. Climate change is expected to lead to continued warming and fewer but more intense storms impacting the snowpack of the Sierra Nevada. These changes continue to impact the distribution of snow across elevations, its pattern of accumulation, and rate of melt.