Survey: Sierra snowfall slightly below average (PDF)

David McNew/Getty Images

Winter clouds swirl over the White Mountains Nov. 19, 2003 east of the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains and Bishop, California.

California snow surveyors have confirmed what many feared after a relatively dry January — the water content of snow that has accumulated in the Sierra is slightly below average for this time of year.

Measurements show the water content at 93 percent of normal.

Early storms in November and December dumped snow ranging from 32 ½ to 44 inches around Echo Summit off of Highway 50. Very little has fallen since.

California water agencies depend on a melting snowpack to replenish the state's reservoirs throughout the summer. About a third of the state's water comes from snowmelt.

012913 by scprweb