Weekly conditions update:
– After weeks of warm weather, last week’s cool, wet conditions delivered an average of 0.6 inches of precipitation across the Snake River Headwaters.
– Last week’s moisture was not enough to offset early melt, with the current snowpack at 57% of normal.
– With mean daily air temperatures around 3°F below average last week, streamflow in the Snake River tributaries began to decrease as snowmelt slowed.
– In line with the water management goal of keeping water stored as high in the upper Snake River system as possible, Jackson Lake continues to fill and outflows remain near the winter target of 280 cfs.
– Palisades outflows have increased to 8,000 cfs to meet downstream irrigation demand.
Looking towards this summer, while streamflow in tributaries will likely be below average, flows on the Snake River mainstem below Jackson will be high as stored water is sent to meet downstream irrigation demand. After a warm start, weather forecasts are calling for more cool, wet conditions later this week. Stay tuned for weekly updates as conditions change.
The Bureau of Reclamation will host its annual Snake River operations meeting on Thursday, May 14th. We will share additional details about this meeting when they become available.
Data are from NRCS SNOTEL, US Geological Survey, US Bureau of Reclamation, and the National Weather Service.