Snowpack Declines, Many Basins Still Near Normal

For the second straight month, Montana has seen a decline in the snowpack due to the lack of significant snowfall and above normal temperatures, according to snowpack data from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Basins west of the Continental Divide have seen the most substantial change since Feb. 1 with basin snowpack percentages declining 9 to 16 percent during the month. East of the Continental Divide most of the basins saw a decline in snowpack percentages, but not to the extent of the western part of the state. One basin that feeds Montana rivers from the south in Wyoming saw an increase in snowpack during the month, the Lower Yellowstone.