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2 Jun 11 - "States across the West are bracing for major flooding in the coming weeks once a record mountain snowpack starts melting and sending water gushing into rivers, streams and low-lying communities," says this article by Nicholas K. Geranios. Flooding this year could be worse than anyone has ever seen, says Randy Julander, a supervisor with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service. Montana, South Dakota, North Dakota, Washington, Oregon, Utah, even California, all are bracing for massive flooding. Snowpack in the Western states is a combined 220 percent of average for this time of year, said Jon Lea, a hydrologist with the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service in Portland. In some states it's even worse. According to a Natural Resources Conservation Service report, water content of the snowpack across Wyoming stands at more than three times average for this time of year. Utah could be one of the hardest-hit spots thanks to heavy mountain snow and a record of 11.73 inches of rain in the past three months. Or will California be hardest hit? "Federal officials have determined that Sacramento has the highest flood risk of any U.S. city outside New Orleans, with some neighborhoods under 10 to 20 feet of water after a catastrophic levee failure," says Geranios. Meanwhile, the extra water is good news for the parched Southwest. Water levels in Lake Mead could rise at least 20 feet by August, the first significant increase in more than 10 years.
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