East Idaho snowpack decreasing early

REXBURG — As the months get warmer millions of people in the West depend on the melting of mountain snowpack for things like power, irrigation, and drinking water. This year Idaho and other western states have seen a decrease in the amount of the vital snowpack.

“We started melting some of the snow earlier. Our snowpack actually peaked in March first rather than in April first like it normally does. During the month of March we saw a net decrease rather than accumulating snowpack and that’s what hurt us the most,” said Ron Abramovich, Water Specialist for the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service of Idaho.

BYU-Idaho Radio Reporter Nina Olsen has more on the story in the clip above.

For more information about snowpack, the USDA has a new interactive map on its website that shows current snowpack and water levels throughout the West. The map is located here.