Snow conditions commentary

A bi-weekly commentary of snow conditions based on readings from the B.C. Automated Snow Weather Station (ASWS) network is published during the snow season.

February 18, 2025

Cold and dry weather extended across B.C. during the first half of February. Although low elevation snowfall occurred at the start of the month, particularly on Vancouver Island and the South Coast, very little snow accumulated in the mountains. A weather pattern shift with warmer temperatures and frontal systems originating from the Pacific began on February 15. Ongoing storm systems bringing widespread precipitation are expected to continue for the upcoming 10-day weather forecast. 

A complete listing of Automated Snow Weather Stations (ASWS) expressed as percent of long-term median for the entire length of record is found in the ASWS Weekly Summary (PDF, 186KB)*. Hyperlinks to interactive plots are available for each ASWS in the table.

*Note: These are not the official snow basin indices. 

The provincial average for February 15th at all ASWS sites is 78% of the period of record median, decreasing from 83% on February 1st. The Fraser River basin stations average 76% (February 1st: 83%). By February 15th, on average, approximately three-quarters of the total seasonal snowpack has accumulated.

As of February 15th, the ASWS measured significant decreases in snowpack from February 1st in the Upper Fraser West (-39 percentage points), Liard (-13), Boundary (-12), Upper Fraser East (-11), Stikine (-11) and Central Coast (-10). Other regions of the province measured reductions of one to nine percentage points over the first two weeks of Febraury. The Lower Fraser (+2) and West Kootenay (+6) were the only regions to measure increases relative to median, but those were solely driven by newer lower elevation stations at Dickson Lake (1D16P) and Duncan Lake Dam (2D07AP), respectively.

A provincial composite graph of all automated stations with relatively long-term record is shown below. The data for the graph begins in 1988. 

^{The February 15th percentage of average is 70% (February 1st: 75%) and at the 5th percentile (February 1st: 9th).}  

The March 1st, 2025 Snow and Water Supply Bulletin is scheduled to be released approximately March 10th or 11th, 2025, based on data availability. The bulletin offers a more detailed and comprehensive summary of the February 1st snowpack statistics and includes approximately 100 Manual Snow Survey measurements. The official Snow Basin Indices are calculated within the Bulletin.