Local News

March Snowpack Increased, Helps Drought Conditions

Prineville, OR -- March was a very good month for powder. Early spring storms made a significant impact on Oregon’s snowpack. “We saw a pretty significant increase in snow accumulation in all basins,” and Natural Resources Conservation Service hydrologist Matt Warbritton says the season isn’t over, “All basins are above to well-above normal, in terms of snowpack, and it hasn’t stopped yet. We haven’t reached a peak or the onset of snowmelt. That's, of course, good to see; especially in areas that have experienced more extreme or exceptional drought.”

Warbritton says it’s good news for this summer, “In particular, for areas that have experienced really persistent drought, like Crook County, that snowpack is starting to fill in those deficits that we’ve been seeing over multiple years; both in precipitation and snowpack. That’s not to say those areas are recovered from drought, by any means.” He adds, "This is a small step towards recovery. We’re still seeing very low reservoir storage levels in the Ochoco and Prineville Reservoirs, pretty low stream flows and, in general, pretty dry soil moisture profiles across that region, too."

Until last week, Crook County was the only place in the western U.S. with an ‘Exceptional’ drought designation. It’s now moved to ‘Extreme,’ in large part because of the massive snowpack in the Ochocos. Warbritton tells KBND News, " The Ochoco Snotel site has recorded its wettest March on record, for that site," and it's that site's second highest snowpack ever. “If we move on over into the Blues, a little bit more toward Baker City, one of our sites has its second highest snowpack on record, again, this season. There is a site in the Central Cascades, Holland Meadows Snotel, that has recorded its highest snowpack on record. And that’s still climbing upward."

What it all means for summer irrigation remains to be seen, depending on how quickly temperatures warm.

 

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