As flood risk looms, inside the scientific guesswork that keeps Utah water managers up at night

Officials who work to prevent flooding must sift through different data sources — like stream flows and snow totals — to make decisions. But spring runoff is unpredictable.

(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Snow covers Little Dell Reservoir on Wednesday, April 5, 2023. Salt Lake City Public Utilities has been releasing water from its reservoirs, primarily Little Dell, for the last several months after officials saw the snowpack was building.

As flood risk looms, inside the scientific guesswork that keeps Utah water managers up at night

Officials who work to prevent flooding must sift through different data sources — like stream flows and snow totals — to make decisions. But spring runoff is unpredictable.

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