California snowpack dips down, but won't impact Bay Area water levels, officials say

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- The statewide snowpack survey took a turn back towards average after a significant dip from January to February, according to the California Dept. of Water Resources.

We currently sit at 85% of average, but experts are not confident we will reach normal levels.

Recent weather has given the Bay Area a taste of spring in the past few weeks. But a similar beautiful forecast in Tahoe is less than good news for snow on the ground.

For every day it's not snowing or raining, snow is melting. And the latest Department of Water Resources survey at Phillips Station reflects that.

"Our survey today recorded a snow depth of 34 inches and a water content of 13.5 inches," DWR Snow Surveys and Water Supply forecasting unit manager Andy Reising said. "The snow water content measurement is 58% of average for this date and 55% of the April 1 average at this location."

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Most of the snowpack is coming from the Northern Sierra this year, with the Central and Southern Sierra showing even further less than average.

There's some work to do to get back to normal.

"At the beginning of this calendar year, the statewide snowpack was at 108% of average for that date," Reising said. "But, an extremely dry January dropped that to 69% of average a month later with a lower snowpack."

Despite some solid storms in February, recent weather chipped away at gains.

December, January and February normally account for half of California's annual precipitation.

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Making next month's weather important, but state climatologist Dr. Michael Anderson said Friday, it's an uphill battle.

"March, the key player if you're behind and looking to catch up, sometimes doesn't work out that way," Dr. Anderson said. "It's quite possible that we have that window of precipitation in the first half of the month that maybe does not hold out."

Despite a forecasted below-average year for snowpack, the last few winters have kept reservoirs full - including in Santa Clara County, where levels are at 114% of average.

Meaning this year, there's less of a reliance for snowpack than usual.

"Good news is the reservoirs there in Northern California, Shasta and Oroville, they're full," Valley Water spokesperson Matt Keller said. "So, we're getting a boost in our allocations. That was just announced this week, so that's good news for us since we import about half our water from into Santa Clara County."

The fourth and most important snow survey of the year, when levels typically hit their peak, will tell the tale of our 2024-2025 water year.