B.C.’s snowpack remains ‘very low,’ drought concerns high despite snowfall

B.C.’s recent string of rain and snow has not made a significant impact on the overall snowpack in the province.

As of March 1, the provincial snowpack remains very low, according to the B.C. Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship.

Across B.C., the snowpack is about 34 per cent below season averages.

1:58 Metro Vancouver storing water earlier than normal due to low snowpack levels

The Fraser River at Hope, B.C., is well below normal as well at 70 per cent.

Officials with the province have been vocal regarding concerns with the coming spring and summer when it comes to drought conditions and the inevitable wildfire season.

Dry conditions persisted through February until a late stormy pattern brought the most significant snowfall of the season. Even with the snowfall, a low snowpack and seasonal runoff forecasts combined with warm seasonal weather lead officials to believing there will be a significant drought hazard for the spring and summer.

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Two February storms did provide some relief but it has not been enough to curb concerns with the below-average snowpack.

There is roughly two months left for snow accumulation, but officials said the weather trends and forecasts are leading them to think the below-normal snowpack is expected to continue.

For the Metro Vancouver area, as of March 1, the basin snow water index shows the region to be below 50 per cent of normal.

2:10 BC Hydro preparing for lower reservoir levels

For south of the Fraser River, the water index is hovering between 60 and 69 per cent of normal.

B.C. is coming off its worst wildfire season in recorded history, something every British Columbian is worried about repeating in 2024.

Just last month, B.C. Premier David Eby said he is “profoundly worried” about the potentially “terrible” upcoming wildfire season, a major reason why the province has set aside $10.6 billion in contingency funds over the next three years.

Eby said the province is “standing up an army of firefighters” in preparation for this season’s wildfires, with about 1,000 people already applying to join the wildfire team this year.

The premier also said the province is leasing aircraft and expanding infrastructure to allow for firefighters to conduct operations such as aerial missions at night, enhancing B.C.’s capacity to fight wildfires around the clock.

The 2023 wildfire season has been the most destructive in British Columbia’s recorded history, with more than 2.84 million hectares of forest and land burned.

1:35 B.C. mountain snowpack near record low as drought risk increases