Publication Date June 21, 2016 | San Jose Mercury

UCLA researchers: Sierra snowpack will not return to pre-drought levels until at least 2019

Sierra Nevada, California, USA
Photo: Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press
Photo: Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press

Despite the state's wettest winter in five years, the Sierra Nevada snowpack will not return to pre-drought levels until at least 2019, according to a new analysis...

This winter's El Niño storms provided significant rain and snow, considerably softening California's drought emergency as it entered its fifth year, particularly in Northern California. But the cumulative effects of the drought mean that the recovery period will be longer than for previous dry spells