SACRAMENTO – (INT) – Hope is fading that California’s so-called ‘rainy season’ will materialize.

The monthly Sierra snowpack survey bore some disappointing results Thursday.

Electronic readings from 103 stations scattered throughout the Sierra found the northern Sierra snowpack at only 27 percent of normal, 30 percent in the Central Sierra and only one-fourth of normal in the Southern Sierra.

On average, the snowpack supplies about 30 percent of California’s water needs as it melts in the spring and early summer.

California’s exceptionally high precipitation last winter and spring has resulted in above-average storage in 154 reservoirs this year.

“California experiences the most variable weather in the nation,” said DWR Director Karla Nemeth. “It’s vital that water conservation efforts remain consistent regardless of the year’s precipitation.”

Story Date: February 20, 2018