California snowpack above average for this time of year
California water managers say the Sierra Nevada has an above-average snowpack for this time of year, yet it’s not enough to make a dent in California’s stubborn drought.
Department of Water Resources spokesman Doug Carlson said preliminary estimates taken Wednesday show that recent storms boosted the snowpack’s statewide water content to 112 percent of normal for late December.
Officials say it will take moisture levels much greater than normal to have a substantial impact on the drought.
National Weather Service meteorologist Nathan Owen says more than a foot of new snow could fall Thursday at Lake Tahoe.
The winter’s wet start comes as a sharp contrast to last year.
On Jan. 1, the snowpack measured at 45 percent of the historical average.
By April 1, it was at 5 percent, marking a record low.
