Snowpack As Battery: A Primer

Mountain snowpack is of particular importance here in Oregon, where it makes up a large percentage of our water storage compared to other states. In fact, in most western river basins snowpack is a larger component of water storage than man-made reservoirs. Snowpack acts like a battery for our region, storing water during the high-precipitation months of winter and then releasing the water as the warmer seasons of spring and summer appear. This cycle is critical to meeting the higher demands for water and hydropower that occur throughout the summer.

The gradual increase in temperature that western North America has experienced over the past century brings with it new challenges and threats to the snowpack cycle. Already, declines in the spring snowpack have been observed in the Cascades, and winter snows are melting earlier. Although most of these changes are occurring in low-to-middle elevations, while the bulk of the snowpack is contained in higher elevations, this general trend should not be ignored. This year, we saw the snowpack melt earlier and faster than the average from past years as we headed into summer.  This year’s snowpack doesn’t seem quite as ominous compared to last year, in which Oregon saw one of the worst droughts in recent history, but reports say that it could still cause drought to a lesser extent in some areas of Oregon toward the end of the summer.

In the future, we can expect to see further declines in snowpack levels. For example, a study from OSU demonstrated that projected temperature elevations will result in a 56% average drop in snowpack-stored water in the McKenzie River watershed of the Oregon Cascade Range by the middle of the century.

So what will be the effect of earlier snowpack melt and a lack of stored water for summer? When the snowpack melts earlier it creates an increased risk of spring flooding, particularly when rain falls on existing snowpack that is already melting. The resulting run-off from these “rain-on-snow” events can threaten wildlife, damage the surrounding environment, and cause landslides and debris flows. During years of spring snowpack melt and higher temperatures, summer droughts often follow due to the lack of snowpack (and therefore stored water) that remains in the mountains. Droughts threaten agriculture, drinking water supply, wildlife survival rates, and hydropower production.

Although it is easy to despair over climate change, the snowpack problem here in Oregon is not nearly as bad as in other areas of the world. However, like many others that call the Pacific Northwest home, it raises concerns for me as I wonder what the next fifty years will bring to our region. Recognizing that our way of life is being threatened is the first step to solving the climate change problem. Coming together as a community to effect change is the second step, one that we here at CUB are already working towards to ensure that the PNW and its inhabitants are protected for many years to come.

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