File Photo (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Michael Reeve

POTENTIAL DROUGHT

Despite snowpack rise, experts warn a drought still appears to be in the cards for B.C.

Feb 9, 2024 | 5:30 PM

KAMLOOPS — Despite a small improvement, the latest snowpack figures from the BC River Forecast Centre shows the Kamloops area are still well below average for this time of year.

The provincial snowpack remains very low, averaging 61 per cent of snow for this time of year.

Meanwhile, the North Thompson and South Thompson basins both increased to 73 per cent and 81 per cent of normal.

The low snowpack and seasonal runoff forecasts have the River Forecast Centre concerned about the impacts of lingering drought throughout the region.

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“We are definitely starting to see that signature as we come into this next season of some more adverse outlooks for the drought side of things,” said Dave Campbell, head of the BC River Forecast Centre. “Even though the Thompson region, for example, is a little bit above the provincial average, it still is below normal, so we are having that low snowpack even in places in the Thompson.”

The centre noted there are still three more months for snowpack to accumulate in the mountains, with close to one-third of the annual snowpack historically coming in the final two months.

Campbell stated April’s update is normally the best gauge for what’s to come, but concerns are rising about lower elevation snow.

“Things can change, maybe not dramatically. But we certainly can make up some ground,” said Campbell. “I think one of the pieces we are looking at is the projection of the seasonal forecast with the expectation of temperatures to remain above normal. That can impose challenges. We would expect the trend of lower snowpack to continue and one of the things that is a little harder to capture is that valley bottom snowpack. With the warmer temperatures they tend to be more vulnerable.”

The next snowpack report is scheduled for March 8.