Additional snow last week contributing to mostly normal spring runoff in Saskatchewan

The spring runoff outlook for Saskatchewan is getting an update after last week’s major snow dump, though the update does not include the spring snowstorm that hit the province this week.

The Saskatchewan Water Security Agency is predicting near-normal to below-normal runoff for 2026.

Read more:

• Spring runoff outlook mixed across Saskatchewan: Water Security Agency
• Normal spring runoff predicted for Saskatchewan despite recent snowfall
• Another dry spring for Sask. southwest: Water Security Agency

The agency said it has been closely monitoring conditions over the past month, and “additional manual snow surveys were completed at 12 selected sites across Saskatchewan on April 9 and 10, 2026, supplementing ongoing monitoring efforts.”

Normal runoff is expected due to additional accumulation of snow since March 1 across most of central Saskatchewan. East central Saskatchewan is expected to have well-above-normal runoff, including areas around Hudson’s Bay and north of Yorkton and Wynyard. Above-normal snowpack will likely lead to normal runoff in the Quill Lakes Basin, the agency said.

Snow, according to the agency’s findings, has persisted in the central and northern parts of the province, while melting is far more advanced in the southern parts of Saskatchewan.

The Water Security Agency reported snowmelt has finished in the southern part of the Qu’Appelle River Basin, while in the northern areas of the basin, earlier snowmelt has been slowed by the return of cold temperatures and more snowfall. Within that river basin, all lakes are “expected to remain in the normal operating ranges.”

The Churchill River Basin’s runoff is expected to vary from below normal to above normal.

Snow was already melting south of Yorkton and near the Quill Lakes, according to survey results from the agency, with most of the snow gone already. North of Yorkton and north of Melfort near Meadow Lake and Prince Albert, however, well-above-normal levels of snow remained thanks to the lingering cold temperatures.

Major water supply reservoirs are largely at or above normal levels for this point in the spring, with the exceptions of McDougald and Harris, which are below normal. Reservoirs in the Souris River Basin are expected to remain within normal operating ranges.

Basin condition monitoring and management of Lake Diefenbaker – which is currently above the median for this time of year, but within normal operating range – continues for the Water Security Agency.

Snow in the mountains is well above normal and the “main driver of May and June flows in the Saskatchewan River Basin,” along with spring and summer rainfall, the agency reported. Should those conditions continue, runoff into Lake Diefenbaker would be expected to exceed normal levels.

The agency noted normal precipitation and warmer-than-normal temperatures are predicted in the long-range forecasts for the entirety of southern Saskatchewan between May and July.

The agency said it continues to monitor and will report on “landscape conditions and water supply reservoirs to allow for timely response to changing conditions.”