FARGO — The heavy snowfall this week has many people asking questions about the spring flood. Despite the high drifts of snow all around, the snow accumulation Wednesday will have only a minimal impact on the spring flood. The heaviest of the snow was not very widespread and was concentrated along and either side of I-94, which is not one of the river basins. Also, the snow was light and airy and only contained about half an inch of water and so has not added all that much water to the snowpack.
This is a classic illustration of why the number of inches of snow is not a good indicator of spring flooding. At this juncture, snow water content in the basin varies from slightly below average to slightly above average. The one concern is future weather. If a lot of water is added to the snowpack before or as it melts, the spring flood will be worse than present indications.
The Trust Project
