With 47 inches of snow depth measured in the final snowpack survey of the season, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) recorded 188 percent of average accumulation at Phillips Station in the Sierra Nevada mountains just off Highway 50 near Sierra-at-Tahoe.
Overall, California’s snowpack sat at 144 percent of average for this time of year. The average amount of snow water equivalent—according to DWR, “the depth of water that theoretically would result if the entire snowpack melted instantaneously”—sits at 31 inches.
But, despite the good news, experts are urging Californians to continue using water wisely—harkening back to former governor Jerry Brown’s statement in April 2017 that droughts are California’s new normal.
“California’s cities and farms can expect ample water supplies this summer,” DWR Director Karla Nemeth said in a statement provided by the department. “But it’s critical that it’s put to use replenishing groundwater basins and storage reservoirs for the next inevitable drought. Every resident and business can also help California by using water as efficiently as possible.”
This year’s snowpack peaked on March 31, coming in as the fifth-largest on record. That number is based on more than 250 manual snow surveys conducted each month. That snow is now beginning its long process of melting.
“2019 has been an extremely good year in terms of snowpack,” Jon Ericson, DWR chief of the Division of Flood Management, said in a statement from the department. “Based on our surveys, we are seeing a very dense, cold snowpack that will continue to produce run-off into late summer.”