… [A] rapidly-shrinking snowpack is undercutting plans from the governor’s office and White House, exposing the limits of California’s water playbook and leaving the state on the precipice of drought. The early-season heat wave now gripping the state is wiping out much of its remaining Sierra Nevada snowpack, which acts as a frozen reservoir to dribble out roughly a third of California’s water supply throughout the spring and summer. … The Department of Water Resources said on Wednesday that it got permission from the Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees flood control, to fill up Lake Oroville past the usual safety limit meant to accommodate possible floods to capture remaining snowmelt. 

Other Sierra Nevada snowpack news:

• Reno Gazette Journal (Nev.): How March’s ‘unprecedented heatwave’ affects Reno-Tahoe water, snow
• Active NorCal (Redding, Calif.): Lake Tahoe’s snow is melting so fast it could set a historic low in two weeks
• San Francisco Chronicle: California hits all-time U.S. high for winter heat
• Manteca Bulletin (Calif.): Opinion: California’s biggest reservoir nearing empty as 90 degree heat is ending winter in Golden State
• California Department of Water Resources: News release: DWR conserving water storage at Lake Oroville