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Snowy start to winter could help break Upper Midwest drought

There’s hope above average snowfall this winter will help ease drought conditions in the Upper Midwest.

University of Minnesota Professor Jeff Strock says nearly 35 inches has accumulated since November, and a decent snow melt in the spring could allow water to recharge the soil profile.

“It could set us up for a really fantastic scenario where the slow thaw would allow some of that water that’s in that snow to infiltrate down into the ground and really be advantageous for us going into the later spring and early summer of 2023.”

On the other hand, he tells Brownfield a fast melt could result in runoff and even the potential for flooding.

“Depending on how much more snow we get over the course of the winter.”

But Strock says there’s a lot of storage capacity in rivers, marshes, and sloughs that dried up during the drought. 

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