Media Advisory – May Snowpack Data
May 8, 2024
The BC River Forecast Centre is scheduled to release the results of the most recent province-wide snowpack survey by the end of the business day May 9. Members of the BC Watershed Security Coalition will be available to comment on the latest data.
This winter, British Columbia has experienced record-low snowpack in several regions. The provincial average snowpack on May 1 was 67 per cent of median, up from 62 per cent on April 15. Eight monitoring sites had record lows on May 1 for Snow Water Equivalent, a measurement of the amount of water available in snow.
These are yet more indicators of the strong potential for another year of record drought this summer.
The following members of the BC Watershed Security Coalition can comment on the snowpack data, the impacts the low snowpack will have on freshwater resources and drought later this year, and the actions that provincial and federal leaders should take to prepare B.C. residents and businesses for water scarcity.
Contacts:
Coree Tull, co-chair BC Watershed Security Coalition and director of government relations and engagement, BC Freshwater Legacy Initiative
Aaron Hill, executive director Watershed Watch Salmon Society
Oliver M. Brandes, Co-Director of the POLIS Project on Ecological Governance, University of Victoria
BACKGROUND:
May 1 Province of B.C. Snow Conditions Commentary: Snow conditions commentary – Province of British Columbia (gov.bc.ca)
B.C. River Forecast Centre’s April Snow Conditions and Water Supply Bulletin: 2024_apr1.pdf (gov.bc.ca)
The BC Watershed Security Coalition is a non-partisan coalition of 50 organizations, made up of community water experts and leaders in the field, including farmers, Indigenous champions, local governments, and representing 255,000 British Columbians from all walks of life.
Media Advisory – May Snowpack Data
May 8, 2024
The BC River Forecast Centre is scheduled to release the results of the most recent province-wide snowpack survey by the end of the business day May 9. Members of the BC Watershed Security Coalition will be available to comment on the latest data.
This winter, British Columbia has experienced record-low snowpack in several regions. The provincial average snowpack on May 1 was 67 per cent of median, up from 62 per cent on April 15. Eight monitoring sites had record lows on May 1 for Snow Water Equivalent, a measurement of the amount of water available in snow.
These are yet more indicators of the strong potential for another year of record drought this summer.
The following members of the BC Watershed Security Coalition can comment on the snowpack data, the impacts the low snowpack will have on freshwater resources and drought later this year, and the actions that provincial and federal leaders should take to prepare B.C. residents and businesses for water scarcity.
Contacts:
Coree Tull, co-chair BC Watershed Security Coalition and director of government relations and engagement, BC Freshwater Legacy Initiative
Aaron Hill, executive director Watershed Watch Salmon Society
Oliver M. Brandes, Co-Director of the POLIS Project on Ecological Governance, University of Victoria
BACKGROUND:
May 1 Province of B.C. Snow Conditions Commentary: Snow conditions commentary – Province of British Columbia (gov.bc.ca)
B.C. River Forecast Centre’s April Snow Conditions and Water Supply Bulletin: 2024_apr1.pdf (gov.bc.ca)
The BC Watershed Security Coalition is a non-partisan coalition of 50 organizations, made up of community water experts and leaders in the field, including farmers, Indigenous champions, local governments, and representing 255,000 British Columbians from all walks of life.