Watersheds In Winter (Page 3 of 4) in pdf

Watersheds In Winter Page 3

Watersheds in Winter

Depth of snow: ________ centimetres (cm). Use class average.

Depth of water that snow melted to: _______ cm. Use class average. (This is called the snow’s

“water equivalence”.)

Volume of Water on the Watershed

Volume can be calculated as Area X Depth. Volume can be measured in units of cubic metres.

To calculate a volume in cubic metres (m

), the units for area and depth must first be converted

to metres.

Watershed area = _______ ha = _______________ m

(To convert hectares to square metres,

multiply by 10,000)

Water depth = ________ cm = _________ metres (To convert centimetres to metres, divide by

100.)

Volume = (Area) ____________ m

X (Depth) __________ m = _____________ m

(cubic metres).

Snow Density

Because snow melts to a smaller amount of water, what else is in snow beside water?

Divide: depth of water (cm) X 100% = _________ % Snow Density.

depth of snow (cm)

A snow density of 60% or greater is considered “ripe” for melting. There is little space to soak up

water from rain or melting. Warm temperatures or rain could cause ripe snow to melt quickly

and possibly cause rivers to flood over their banks.

Peel Water Story, Public Works Department, the Regional Municipality of Peel

Watersheds In Winter Page 3