Panhandle snowpack near record low

COEUR d’ALENE — Normal snowfall the rest of the year would only pull the Idaho Panhandle snowpack to about 65% of normal.

“We are at or near record-low snowpack in the Panhandle,” said Peter Youngblood, hydrologist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Snow Survey Office on Friday. “It even gets worse as you move farther south, to the Clearwater Basin.”

According to the NRCS’s January Idaho Water Supply Outlook Report, 45% of Idaho lands are abnormally dry or are in drought. 

“The Panhandle basins are experiencing the driest conditions with total water year precipitation remaining below normal for more than a year now,” the report said.

The seasonal outlook forecasts drought conditions will persist in North Idaho, the report said.

Youngblood said the snowpack has improved in the past few weeks, but warmer temperatures at higher elevations due to El Niño have led to denser snowpack and sets the stage for it to melt earlier than preferred.

Significant snowpack is important in Idaho because it determines how much water is going to run off the mountain come spring and summer.

“Right now, we’re sitting close to record low,” at most measurement sites above 4,000 feet, Youngblood said.

Fall conditions didn’t help.

October precipitation was 35% of normal precipitation and November precipitation ranged between 75 to 85% of normal, the report said.

Storms in December brought more precipitation to the Pend Oreille Basin (130%) compared to the Coeur d’Alene Basin (75%).

“Although there was above-normal precipitation during December in the Pend Oreille Basin, temperatures have been above normal with a major rain-on-snow event that caused significant snowmelt across the region on Dec. 5,” the report said. 

As a result, the snowpack was 45 to 50% of normal on Jan. 1.

The situation isn't likely to improve much.

The outlook for January, February and March predicts above-normal temperatures and below-normal precipitation. 

“There is still time for the snowpack to recover, but if the seasonal outlook of warm and dry conditions become reality it will continue to negatively impact snowpack development,” the report said.

Ski resorts have reported little snowfall lately.

Silver Mountain Resort saw 5 inches fall in the past 72 hours, according to its website on Friday, bringing the depth to 31 inches at the lodge and 52 at the summit.

Schweitzer Mountain Resort reported 2 inches of new snow in the past 72 hours, with 26 inches at the lodge and 61 at the summit. It was expecting rain and snow today.

Lookout Pass reported receiving 8 inches of snow at the summit and 5 inches at the base in the past 72 hours. It had 46 inches at the summit and 18 at the base.

Reservoir storage in Panhandle lakes is mixed. Coeur d’Alene is 82% of normal (24% capacity), Pend Oreille is 90% of normal (36% capacity) and Priest Lake is 181% of normal (84% capacity).

Streamflow forecasts for April through July are 70 to 85% of normal in the Panhandle basins.

Youngblood said if temperatures go down and more snow falls, “we could dig ourselves out of this situation.”