"Reversal from last year’s wet winter has left the Sierra snowpack at just 25% of normal for early January".
"California’s statewide Sierra Nevada snowpack — the source of nearly one-third of the state’s water supply — is at its lowest level in a decade, a major turnaround from last year when huge storms ended a three-year drought and buried ski resorts in massive amounts of snow.
On Tuesday, the snowpack was just 25% of its historical average for Jan. 2. A year ago on the same date, it was a staggering 185% of normal. The last time there was less snow at the beginning of a new year was 2014 when it stood at just 19%.
The lack of snow so far this year is due to fewer big storms hitting the state than normal. And when storms have come, they have been warmer, depositing snow mostly at higher elevations.
But the meager totals so far across California’s pre-eminent mountain range are not a cause to panic, experts say."
Paul Rogers reports for the San Jose Mercury News January 2, 2024.
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