The Department of Water Resources (DWR) today conducted the first snow survey of the season at Phillips Station. The manual survey recorded 24 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 5 inches, which is 50 percent of average for this location. The snow water equivalent measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack and is a key component of DWR’s water supply forecast. Statewide, the snowpack is 71 percent of average for this date. Today’s results are welcome news for water managers who rely on the statewide snow surveys to make water supply decisions for the year ahead.

Other snowpack and water supply news:

• Modesto Bee: Snowpack grew nearly sixfold in watersheds for Stanislaus, neighboring counties
• San Francisco Chronicle: Another storm is set to hit California — in time for New Year’s Eve. Here’s the timeline