Below is a ‘live’ map that displays all of the California weather and stream data collection stations. Many stations in the mountains collect data on snow depth and water equivalent.

This station data is hosted on a GIS (Geographical Information System) server operated by the state. If you click on a symbol then all the attribute data for the thing that you clicked will be delivered from the GIS server to your screen.

The attribute data includes a link that leads to detailed information for that station. For stations that collect snow data you will be able to display a graph showing snow depth or water equivalent over time. You can also play with various settings and produce custom graphs.

I wish there was a way to produce a map that only showed stations with snow data but, alas, to the best of my knowledge the data currently available on the state’s GIS server does not make that possible.

For an example of a station that has snow data, click the symbol directly below the center of the map.

For tips on using the map, click the “About this map” link in the upper left corner.

Joseph, the Gmap4 guy

Very nice, thanks for sharing this.

It seems that much of the buzz about drought in California has shifted from the super low snowpack to the sinking water level in wells as ground water in many areas is being pumped faster than it is being replenished. For insightful background on California groundwater, here are some articles from public-funded media:

http://blogs.kqed.org/science/2014/07/3 ... n-secrecy/

http://blogs.kqed.org/science/2014/08/2 ... nors-desk/

http://blogs.kqed.org/science/2014/09/1 ... water-law/

Also, I was able to find some useful GIS data dealing with California groundwater and so naturally I produced a map.

http://www.mappingsupport.com/p/gmap4.p ... dwater.txt

When this map opens each dot is a well. If you zoom way in then a label will appear by each well showing the change in water level for the period 2011-2014. To see the map legend and learn how to turn other GIS data layers on/off, click “About this map” in the upper left corner of the map.

You might give this a try:
1. Turn off all layers
2. Turn on “2013_2014_ColorRamp”
3. Turn on “2013_2014_Contours”
4. Zoom in on a red area until labels appear on the contour lines.
This data shows how much the groundwater level has changed in this one year period.

Gee, how long do you think that rate of depletion can be sustained?

If you turn on one of the “Groundwater_change” layers and click on a well, then you will see the attribute data the GIS server has for that well. This data includes a link you can follow to see more data for that well. After the state web page fully loads, click the tab “Recent Groundwater Level Data” and you will see a graph of the water level in that well over time.

The map also has layers showing subsidence data.

One can only hope that California will be successful in its attempt to begin regulating groundwater and achieve that goal sooner rather than later.

Joseph, the Gmap4 guy