SACRAMENTO – (INT) – California is also suffering a ‘snow drought’.

The State Department of Water Resources says that while 60 percent of the state is in a severe or extreme drought, the water content of the Sierra snowpack also comes up short.

Record warm temperatures have created an early and below-average runoff from melting snow that was in large part absorbed by parched soil before ever reaching California’s reservoirs.

The forecast for Water Year 2017 is uncertain since La Nina has replaced the rain-bearing El Nino.

Of the 18 La Niña winters since 1950-51, 16 had below average precipitation for Southern California’s coastal region, and 15 winters have resulted in below average precipitation for Southern California’s interior region.

While mandatory water restrictions today vary across California, making water conservation a California way of life remains a statewide goal.

Story Date: October 14, 2016