![]() ![]() Still, the water level is six feet below “the minimum acceptable elevation for the lake’s ecological and economic health,” Brigham Young University ecologist Ben Abbott, who led the January report, tells the Post.ĭespite the season’s impressive snowfall totals, the West remains in the midst of a decades-long megadrought fueled by climate change. But now, the reservoir has risen three feet in roughly five months due to rain and snow from winter storms, reports Dan Stillman for the Washington Post. A report in January found the drying lake had lost about 73 percent of its water and was threatening residents with arsenic-laced dust from the exposed lakebed. ![]() The record amount of snow boosts hopes of short-term relief for the state’s Great Salt Lake, which sank to unprecedented low levels last November due to drought and excessive water use. 93jMkI5Wvj- Utah Division of Water Resources March 30, 2023 Millions of people depend on this melting snow for hydropower, irrigation and drinking water, and about 95 percent of Utah’s water comes from snowpack, per the state’s Department of Natural Resources.Īmendment: there's a more recent drought map and it looks even better. Mountain snow stores water in the winter and releases it in the spring and summer as it melts with rising temperatures. Snowpack is critical for the West’s water supply. Earlier this season, snow totals shattered another record from 1983, which was the highest since modern data collection began. At that time, though, data was only taken once a month from fewer locations, so theoretically, a larger snowpack could have occurred between measurements that year. The state’s average snow-water equivalent, or the amount of water that would be released if the snowpack melted, hit 30 inches as of last week, surpassing the last record of 28.8 inches, set in 1952. “It doesn’t solve the drought problem in the Colorado River Basin, but it’s definitely beneficial.” “It’s a welcome relief,” Paul Miller, a service coordination hydrologist for the Colorado Basin River Forecast Center, tells NBC News’ Evan Bush. ![]() With so much precipitation, several ski resorts in Utah and other parts of the West have extended their seasons into the spring and summer. Last week, the snow on the ground hit 201 percent of its normal level for this time of year.Ī season of extreme winter storms has been making history across the state, with some areas reporting more than 800 inches of snow in recent months. 20.Utah’s snowpack has reached the highest amount ever documented since state records began in the 1930s. Though the recent storm brought a lot of snow, Salt Lake City has otherwise been relatively dry this month with the exception of Tuesday and Wednesday, it saw just 3 inches of snow. The earliest fall snowstorm on record saw 2.2 inches on Sept. The latest spring snowstorm on record was June 6, 1914, though only 2 inches fell. The latest was April 23, 1958, when 10.1 inches fell. If you’re hoping for a quick end to winter, you probably don’t want to know that nine of those dates fell even later on the calendar - one in late February six in March and two in April. Other areas of the state received a lot more snow than Salt Lake City on Wednesday.Īccording to preliminary figures, those totals included: 21 inches in West Jordan 20.5 inches in Midvale 20 inches in South Jordan 18.8 inches in Fort Union 18 inches in Stansbury Park and West Jordan 17.3 inches in Olympus Cove, 15 inches in Sandy and West Valley City 14 inches in Cottonwood Heights, Park City and Riverton and 12 inches in Provo and Spanish Fork.Īccording to National Weather Service records, Salt Lake City has recorded a total of 24 days with 10 or more inches of snow since 1874. (Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Runners negotiate a snow-covered path along Interstate 80 in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Feb. ![]()
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