California survey finds Sierra snowpack far below normal

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – California received a double dose of bad drought news Tuesday, with state officials saying the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada is far below normal and that residents again aren’t coming close to meeting Gov. Jerry Brown’s call for a 20 percent cut in water use.

Snow supplies about a third of the state’s water, and a higher winter snowpack translates to more water in California reservoirs to meet demand in summer and fall.

The latest survey makes it likely California’s drought will run through a fourth year.

Frank Gehrke, chief of the California Cooperative Snow Surveys Program, said there were 6.7 inches of snow on the ground at the survey spot near Echo Summit, about 90 miles east of Sacramento.

“It’s very meager, and it is clearly flirting with being the lowest on record,” he said.

Meanwhile, a new report showed state water conservation slipping from December when Californians cut water use by 22 percent. Urban water use in January declined by only 9 percent compared with the same month in 2013, according to the state Water Resources Control Board.