What Northern Colorado's Snow Pack Means for Water This Spring

As winter cruises along and we look forward to spring, many across the State of Colorado are starting to worry about what the lack of snow means for us with regard to water use, outdoor recreation and especially fire danger when the weather gets warmer.

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Snow pack up in the mountains act as natural reservoirs, releasing their water as temperatures rise, down the Cache La Poudre and Big Thompson rivers, bringing us water across Northern Colorado.

Horsetooth Reservoir, Carter Lake and Boyd Lake help when we have a low snow pack up in the mountains, but as we've seen many years before, they're not bulletproof on water levels either. All of the cities will start evaluating where we're at on potential water levels here soon, as the concern for a small snow pack will most definitely impact how we "spend" our water going forward into the year.

For those of us who use it, that will most likely mean watering restrictions for our yards. But the larger concern is our agricultural friends and neighbors and how they will enter their planting season with less water than they typically need to sustain their crops.

Another - albeit smaller - impact will be felt from a recreational standpoint, with a lack of snow melt impacting our rafting and fishing trips this spring. Too much and the rivers are too aggressive. Too little and the fishies will not make it down to the cities of Northern Colorado the way we're used to.

Regardless of how it all shakes out in the end, residents across Northern Colorado are encouraged to keep up to date with our local water providers, and make sure we're using the water we do have thoughtfully.