January snowpacks for the Silver State are below average in almost all areas, according to the USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service. Snow is 38-46% of normal in the Lake Tahoe, Truckee, Carson and Walker basins. The trend is consistent with below-normal snowpacks throughout the western United States.
As a result of record-setting snowpacks in 2023, reservoir storage in northern Nevada is better than the previous year. Across Nevadaw, strong river flows were enough to meet demand and allow water to be stored in reservoirs.
“Due to the low snowpack, NRCS January 1 streamflow forecasts are far less than last year. If conditions continue to be dry, the water stored in reservoirs will offer a buffer against drought next summer for water users in basins with reservoir storage,” federal officials said in a news release. “There is still time for the snowpack to turn around, however, [but] with each dry week, it becomes less likely snowpacks will reach their normal peak snow water amounts by spring.”
Access the January 1, 2024, Nevada Water Supply Outlook Report with additional information at the Nevada Snow Survey homepage: https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/nevada/snow-survey
Source: USDA
