Traditionally, the first snow pack survey is not a good indicator of what water reserves will be in the spring.  And that’s good news this year because snow pack across the Sierra is 41 percent below average.  Don Strickland of the Department of Water Resources isn’t worried.
 
The last three winters have been quite wet … we have great reservoir storage right now … our reservoirs are running about 120 percent above normal … so, all things considered, even though the snow survey looks a bit light right now , there's no cause for alarm yet.
 
Snow pack data is collected throughout the winter and enables the State to forecast snow melt runoff.  The monthly predictions are used by a wide variety of agencies, such as public utilities, agricultural interests, and flood control managers to name a few.  Snow melt accounts for 65 percent of California’s water supply.

Brian Bahouth KXJZ News