BOISE, Idaho — It has been a dismal year for snow, but we've actually received more precipitation than normal in the Boise and Payette River basins. The difference has been the temperature, and we are trying to learn what the change in climate means for water users— both commercial and recreational.
"If you think about the lack of snow we have gotten in the Treasure Valley, it is unusual," said hydrologist Troy Lindquist with the National Weather Service.
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The mountains of western and central Idaho received some snow this week, and that bumped up the snow water equivalent to 83 percent of average in the Boise Basin, 81 percent in the Payette River Basin, and 69 percent in the Weiser River Basin.
The lack of snow is obvious at lower elevations, but we have also received 4.88 inches of rain at the Boise Airport since the beginning of October, a full inch above the average. I wanted to talk with Troy Linquist to learn more about this strange winter and what it means for the future.
"If we don’t have that mid and low elevation snowpack, that’s just overall going to decrease the spring run-off," said Lindquist. "Instead of it holding as snow and holding in the mountains, that rain has increased the reservoir system."
I've been out kayaking as the South Fork of the Payette River is flowing at normal summer levels and has been for several weeks.
Most of Idaho's rivers are flowing higher than normal, including Mores Creek, which dumps into Lucky Peak Reservoir.
It's good news, but not as good as if the precipitation was sticking around in the mountains in the form of a deep snowpack.
"If we just don’t get the snow that is going to impact the water supply, it's going to impact vegetation, spring flows, the health of the ecosystem, and stuff like that," added Lindquist.
The team at the National Weather Service will continue to monitor the situation daily and Troy Lindquist told me the outlook for the next ten days doesn't look good. However, the wet winter months are a marathon, not a sprint— with several months left to improve the outlook. That said, it could also get worse.
"We got the second half of January, February, and March where we can accumulate snowpack," explained Lindquist. "We do have time to see that snowpack recover, and that’s what we are hoping for."
The Boise system has pretty good carryover from last year between Anderson Ranch, Arrowrock, and Lucky Peak. The system is 58 percent full, and the Payette system is 71 percent full.
Some of Idaho's river basins are actually doing pretty well right now, but southern Idaho is doing the worst, as the Owyhee River Basin is sitting at 20 percent of its average snowpack.
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