AUGUSTA – Maine’s snowpack to date is just as expected, according to the team of snow surveyors who go out annually to measure the amount of snow throughout the state.
Where that snow is, however, is a bit of surprise, the team concluded after making the year’s first survey on Monday, Jan. 3 and Tuesday, Jan. 4. Winter storms so far have piled the snow along the coastal areas and not so much in the western mountains of Maine, according to Robert Johnston, Maine Geological Survey (MGS) senior geologist.
“The snowpack has not yet built up,” Johnston reported this week. “The fluctuating temperatures, along with some rain, have caused a fair amount of melting. Although there is not a lot of snow on the ground, snowpack density [water content/depth] is higher across the state now than it was at this time last year. The melted snow has turned to ice that is locked up in the snowpack.”
“What’s surprising is to see little snow in the western mountains,” he continued. “There’s no deep snow pack yet, and that is due to the fact we’ve had only coastal storms so far. The fine conditions at Maine’s ski areas at this point in the season are a tribute to the snowmakers.”
The cooperative snow survey is conducted annually to help determine potential spring flooding with the development of flood forecasting models. The data is shared with the Maine Emergency Management Agency and county emergency officials and also among Maine hydroelectric companies so they know how much water to hold or release.
The annual snow pack survey has been done for “several decades,” according to Dr. Robert Marvinney, MGS director and Maine state geologist. “It is an important part of what the department does because it helps forecast spring flooding,” he said.
Maine Cooperative Snow Survey team members went to 75 locations around the state this week to take the first snowpack measurement, Johnston said. The first survey began somewhat earlier than usual because some matching National Weather Service data also became available earlier, he noted.
The next survey will be done on Feb. 1, followed by extensive weekly surveys of 140 sites done in March and April and ending with the last survey on May 3. The snowpack in Maine accumulates through the winter with the maximum depth and water content occurring typically some time in March.
The collaborative survey team consists of about 15-20 people with 13 organizations, including two schools – Poland Regional High School and Mt. Abram High School – and three divisions under the Maine Department of Conservation, including MGS, the Allagash Wilderness Waterway under the Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands, and the Maine Forest Service.
Other members include the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Weather Service, Poland Spring Water Co. and several hydroelectric companies. Information from New Hampshire and the Canadian provinces of Quebec and New Brunswick also is used.
Using calibrated hollow tubes, surveyors take samples of the snow in prescribed locations. The survey determines snowpack depth and density, as well as water content, and snowpack maps are prepared.
Sites chosen to survey are in hardwood, forested sites, Johnston said. They also include state parks, such as Grafton Notch State Park in Newry and along the Allagash Wilderness Waterway. The highest snow readings found this week were at Greenville/Greenville Junction with a snow depth of 14.6 inches and a water content of 4.3 inches, the senior geologist said. That site was followed by Churchill Dam on the Allagash, with 12.9 inches of snow and 2.8 inches of water content.
Low spots in the state were at Mount Abram High School in Salem Township and Kingfield, with just a trace of snow measured, Johnston said.
The senior geologist noted that the snow pattern so far was 1-6 inches in the southwest part of the state, with 6-12 inches in the eastern and north central part of the state. Normally, there would be more snow in the western mountain region, he said.
The lack of snow in the far northeast part of the state, measuring only 1-6 inches, also was a surprise, Johnston said.
“Usually we expect Aroostook County to have more snow,” he said, “but we have had warmer temperatures that may have melted some snow.”
Snow survey information is available on line at: http://www.maine.gov/rfac/rfac_snow.shtml
Information about the Maine Cooperative Snow Survey is available at: http://www.maine.gov/rfac/rfac_snow_about.shtml
A description of how the snowpack is measured can be found on line at: http://www.maine.gov/doc/nrimc/mgs/explore/hazards/flood/sites/feb97.htm
