After a prolonged dry spell at the beginning of the year, the California snowpack has made a remarkable comeback. The California Department of Water Resources said on Tuesday that the snowpack is at 96% of average, thanks in part to a late-season storm that’s been dumping multiple feet of snow on the Sierra this week.
“Earlier on, there was some indicators that we might have a dry year, but fortunately, the storm windows have stayed open and given us a good boost in February and March,” said Andy Reising, manager of the Department of Water Resources’ snow surveys and water supply forecasting unit, in a press conference on Tuesday.
This year’s near-average winter stacks on top of last year’s above-average snowpack and the record-breaking winter of 2023 — a boon for California’s water resources. Three average or above-average winters in a row are actually quite rare for the Sierra Nevada, said Andrew Schwartz, director of the Central Sierra Snow Laboratory…