Tahoe was pummeled with snow. Will the winter storm impact the drought?
The winter storm that dropped rain across the Bay Area dumped snow on the Sierras and ski resorts across Tahoe. Heavy snow and slick roads also made for dangerous driving conditions but the precipitation is a boon for California’s water supply. Building on gains during a storm in early November, this latest storm brought statewide snowpack up to 106% of normal for December 1, according to the California Department of Water Resources. The snow is beneficial but it’s still early in the season, said Andrew Schwartz, the lead scientist at UC Berkeley’s Central Sierra Snow Laboratory. The previous water year, for example, started out with plentiful rains during October and December 2021 but were followed by an extremely dry start to 2022.
Related articles: