Nicola snowpack figures drop to lowest in BC

As warmer weather has begun to take hold in the Nicola Valley, the snowpack in the mountain ranges has decreased significantly.

Hydrologist Jonathan Boyd from the BC River Forecast Centre joined Q101 to discuss the May snowpack figures which saw the region begin the Spring melt.

“It’s definitely a marked change in terms of the Nicola. The Nicola is actually coming in at the lowest for the whole province at 64 per cent of normal for May 1, and that’s a drop from 108 per cent for April 1,” said Boyd.

“We saw an early melt for a lot of the province, and the Nicola is an area that has a lower and mid-elevation snowpack. We’ve seen that snowpack dwindle to where there really isn’t much risk of snow-related flooding in the Nicola this year,” added Boyd.

Boyd did continue to state that heavy rain through the Spring could still lead to flooding in the region.