Oregon Snowpack In Very Good Shape

Unlike its neighbors across the west, Oregon’s snowpack is in very good shape for this time of year.  Matt Warbritton with NRCS said there are several states across the west, such as Washington, experiencing a snow drought.  The Beaver State he noted is on the opposite end of that spectrum.

“And especially in central and southern Oregon and most of eastern Oregon. These regions have experienced more favorable impacts from the storm events, not only early in the season, but also with this recent storm cycle. Snowpack in that area generally is trending well above normal for this time of year, and we're seeing in fact some SNOTEL stations with record snowpack for this time of year.”

Currently, half of Oregon’s 12 basins have snowpacks at or above 150% of average for this time of year.  In fact, only the Owyhee in SE Oregon is reporting a snowpack below average.

When it comes to Water Year To Date precipitation, which can sometime differ than the snowpack numbers, Warbritton says things are looking good across southern, central and much of eastern Oregon.  He said those areas are reporting above normal precipitation conditions.

“We are seeing deficits in Water Year To Date precipitation in the Mount Hood region and also portions of the Northern Blues," Warbritton noted.  "So, you know, if there's any areas to keep an eye on in terms of moisture deficits through the rest of this winter and early spring, it'd be those two regions.” 

For more on the current state of the Oregon Snowpack, listen to our podcast with Warbritton:

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