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MARCH 1 SNOWPACK BELOW AVERAGE AND BELOW LAST YEAR

March 6, 2009

For More Information:
Roy Kaiser, 406-587-6991
Larry Cooper, 406-587-6842

Bozeman--Statewide snowpack slips to below average during February. February generally had scattered mountain snow showers and spring-like temperatures until the last week of the month when areas west of the Continental Divide and areas of north-central Montana had significant snow-water increases. February snow-water gain in the Columbia River Basin was below average; Missouri River Basin was well below average; Saint Mary River Basin was below average; and Yellowstone River Basin was below average.

On March 1, seasonal snowpack accumulation statewide should be about 80 percent. Seasonal snowpack accumulation should be about 85 percent west of the Continental Divide and about 75 percent east of the Continental Divide. There are normally about 4 to 6 weeks remaining until the seasonal snowpack peak is reached. Statewide mountain snow-water content was 87 percent of average and 81 percent of last year at this time. West of the Continental Divide, snowpack was 85 percent of average and 77 percent of last year, and, east of the Continental Divide, snowpack was 90 percent of average and 88 percent of last year.

Snow Water Content
River Basin Percent of Average Percent of Last Year February Percent of Change
Columbia 85 77 -5
Kootenai Montana 78 118 -1
Flathead, Montana 86 80 0
Upper Clark Fork 90 94 -12
Bitterroot 91 78 -8
Lower Clark Fork 84 63 -5
Missouri 87 84 -8
Missouri Headwaters 89 84 -6
Jefferson 91 87 -10
Madison 85 78 -3
Gallatin 91 83 -3
Missouri Mainstream 84 85 -16
Headwaters Mainstream 97 100 -9
Smith-Judith-Musselshell 91 100 -9
Sun-Teton- Marias 73 67 -5
Milk 104 92 --
Bearpaw Mountains 117 123 -14
Cypress Hills, Canada 88 71 --
St. Mary 69 63 +4
St. Mary and Milk 79 71 -17
Yellowstone 95 97 -6
Upper Yellowstone 96 93 -5
Lower Yellowstone 94 101 -6
Statewide 87 81 -6

Streamflows across Montana are forecast to average 76 to 89 percent. West of the Continental Divide, streamflows are forecast to average 82 to 92 percent, and, east of the Continental Divide, steamflows are forecast to average 71 to 87 percent. Water users and water managers need to pay particular attention to local basins affecting their water supplies, as there are several localized areas where snowpack and streamflow forecasts are below average.

Below are averaged streamflow forecasts, by river basin, for the period April 1 through July 31. THESE FORECASTS ASSUME NEAR NORMAL SPRING CONDITIONS AND DO NOT ACCOUNT FOR WELL BELOW AVERAGE (70% or less) OR ABOVE AVERAGE (110% OR MORE) SNOWMELT OR SPRING RAIN. Specific forecast probabilities are available in each individual River Basin Report on the Montana NRCS web page.

Streamflow Forecasts
River Basin April to July this Year Percent of Average April to July Last Year Percent of Average
Columbia 82 to 92 91 to 101
Kootenai 74 to 82 97 to 105
Flathead 81 to 91 93 to 100
Upper Clark Fork 85 to 99 82 to 96
Bitterroot 85 to 93 97 to 105
Lower Clark Fork 83 to 89 97 to 103
Missouri 65 to 82 79 to 96
Jefferson 64 to 84 74 to 96
Madison 76 to 83 104 to 112
Gallatin 74 to 84 97 to 108
Missouri Mainstem 67 to 81 95 to 110
Smith-Judith-Musselshell 65 to 86 49 to 66
Sun-Teton-Marias 57 to 74 87 to 104
Milk 68 to 93 67 to 94
St. Mary 76 to 83 98 to 105
Yellowstone 85 to 98 95 to 98
Upper Yellowstone 84 to 95 89 to 100
Lower Yellowstone 85 to 103 80 to 95
Statewide 76 to 89 85 to 98

NOTE: The APRIL-JULY LAST YEAR % OF AVERAGE column above is what was forecast last year, NOT what actually occurred.

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