Spring Heat Can Wipe Out Snowpack

Extreme warm spells in late winter or early spring can erase a region’s snow water reserve even when seasonal precipitation appears near normal, producing near‑instantaneous ‘snow drought’ that leaves reservoirs and river basins critically underfilled for the water year. This shift means water managers, power operators and fire agencies must treat spring temperature anomalies — not just precipitation totals — as primary triggers for drought, fire and hydropower risk. — If spring warmth can nullify accumulated snowpack rapidly, policy and infrastructure planning (reservoir management, drought declarations, water allocations, wildfire preparedness, and grid/hydropower planning) need to prioritize temperature-driven melt risk and earlier-season forecast horizons.