Wet, cool in southern Alberta predicted for early spring

Alberta Environment is predicting generally above-average runoff from the mountain snowpack into southern Alberta’s major river systems this spring and summer.

And the long-term weather forecast is for wet, cooler conditions through April across the southern prairies.

The Water Supply Outlook for March to September predicts average to above average levels in the Bow and Milk River systems, based on the accumulations in the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains.

The Oldman River Basin, which forms the South Saskatchewan River with the Bow, will see below to average levels.

That report, published in early February will be updated next month.

In terms of current soil moisture, most of southern Alberta sits at near normal levels, with moderately high levels situated in large swaths of Cypress County, the northern portions of the County of Forty Mile, and eastern portions of the M.D. of Taber. Drier moving northward, Special Areas are considered moderately low to low.

An evaluation of the snow course at the Cypress Hills, shows mostly at or slightly above average.

Stations along the Gros Ventre, Mitchell Creeks and Ross creeks, mostly place snowpack levels around mid-point of readings taken since the early 1980s

Only the lower portion of the Ross Creek registered well above average.

There, the third heaviest snowpack on record sits at 114 millimetres of snow water equivalent. That is still well below the record of 167 mm recorded in 2011 that contributed to widespread overland flooding that year.

The upper Mitchell system, as well was 1.5 times the historical average, but only two-thirds the alltime record amount, again from 2011.