Sean de Guzman of the Department of Water Resources for California at Phillips.
PHILLIPS STATIONS, Calif. - The Sierra snow pack was measured at 93 percent of average on Thursday at Phillips Station, west of Lake Tahoe, the first of the winter 2020 snow pack surveys.
A team from California Department of Water Resources (DWR) found 30.5 inches of snow with 10.5 inches of snow water equivalent (SWE).
The SWE measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack, which provides a more accurate forecast of spring runoff. Measurements from the 130 electronic snow sensors, scattered throughout the state, indicate that the statewide snowpack’s water equivalent is 15.2 inches, or 53 percent of the April average.
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Sean de Guzman, chief of DWRâs Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Section, carries the measure tape to the next sampling point for the third snow survey of the 2020 season at Phillips Station in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Helping with the survey are Lauren Miller, engineer DWRâs Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Section and Ramesh Gautum, Chief California Cooperative Snow Surveys Program. The survey site is approximately 90 miles east of Sacramento off Highway 50 in El Dorado County. Photo taken January 2.
Jonathan Wong / California Department of Water Resources
By Jake Abbott /
jabbott@appealdemocrat.com Dec 28, 2020
Coping with fire-scorched land more prone to mudslides
After a fire, rain can feel like a refreshing mercy. But it also spells fresh danger in fire-struck areas made newly vulnerable to mudslides. Amidst recovering from the trauma of a wildfire, people in hillside homes across much of the western U.S., in particular, must now be ready to evacuate when threatening heavy rains appear in the forecast.
That’s because fires do more to the physical environment than level buildings and fell trees. They also alter the makeup of the soil, making it less likely it will absorb rainwater, especially during a downpour.
Congress Appropriations Bill includes $206 million for Friant-Kern Canal recorderonline.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from recorderonline.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Briefs: New digital learning option available for all Lodi Unified students [Lodi News-Sentinel, Calif.]
Dec. 19 LODI At its Dec. 15 meeting, the Lodi Unified School District Board of Education approved an expansion of remote learning opportunities for the 2021-22 school year.
The Lodi Digital Academy will be a separate program from the distance learning that is taking place this school year amid the pandemic. The academy will be available for all students in kindergarten through 12th grade, under the independent study program. The academy is being created to offer families who want their students to learn remotely next school year with an additional online option.