(North Bay, Ontario, April 6, 2023) The existing snowpack water content is very high and snow depth has increased according to the North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority (NBMCA) which measures the snowpack as part of its flood forecasting program.
“Snowpack water content ranges between 181 mm and 238 mm of water equivalent. This is an increase of 6 to 54 mm since the last survey on March 31,” said Angela Mills, NBMCA’s Water Resources Specialist. “Snow depth ranges between 51 and 60 cm in the NBMCA watershed, an increase of 5 to 10 cm since the last survey,” she added.
“The snowpack is storing much more water than normal, with a considerable increase at North Bay, while Chisholm and Corbeil increased slightly. We continue to monitor for the risk of flooding,” said Chitra Gowda, CAO, Secretary Treasurer.
NBMCA is measuring the snowpack weekly, to monitor conditions during the spring freshet. This is a supplementary survey so there will only be comparisons to last week’s measurements. The percent normal data will be calculated for the next snow survey which takes place April 14.
Snow is measured for depth and water equivalence at three locations in the watershed.
North Bay Golf and Country Club (Chippewa Creek Watershed, North Bay)
*Data prior to Dec. 2011 collected at the former Northeast Mental Health Centre, Hwy 11
|
Current Average Snow Depth for April 6, 2023 |
59.5 cm |
|
Current Average Water Equivalence for April 6, 2023 |
238 mm |
Corbeil Conservation Area (La Vase River Watershed, Corbeil)
|
Current Average Snow Depth for April 6, 2023 |
51.2 cm |
|
Current Average Water Equivalence for April 6, 2023 |
181 mm |
Shirley Skinner Conservation Area (Kaibuskong River Watershed, Chisholm)
|
Current Average Snow Depth for April 6, 2023 |
55.0 cm |
|
Current Average Water Equivalence for April 6, 2023 |
183 mm |
The North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority (NBMCA) was founded in 1972 by the Province of Ontario and the NBMCA’s 10 member municipalities. NBMCA is one of 36 Conservation Authorities in Ontario responsible for watershed management on behalf of local municipalities, stakeholders, and the province.
The public can follow NBMCA on the web at nbmca.ca, on Twitter (@theNBMCA), Facebook (@theNBMCA) and Instagram (nbmcainfo).
For more information, contact:
Angela Mills, Water Resources Specialist, (705) 497-4668
Chitra Gowda, CAO, Secretary Treasurer (705) 474-5420