2019-2020 Snow Season: How Does It Stack Up?
With hot weather finally starting to creep back across the Denver area, the 2019-2020 snow season is officially over. With the last snowstorm in late April, the National Weather Service tallied up the total snowfall for the 2019-2020 season at 57.6”, which is pretty average for the Denver area, and a decent amount of snow to close out the decade. How does this year’s snowfall compare to the last 10 years? Here is a comparison of the last 10 Denver-area snow seasons:
Credit: weather.gov
Taking a glance at this chart gives us a good picture of where we stand for the 2019-2020 season, and the last 10 years as a whole:
- 2019-2020 was the first time in 4 years that we had above-average snowfall
- 2019-2020 was the 2nd most snowfall in the last 5 years
- 2019-2020 was the 4th most snowfall overall in the last 10 years
- Only 4 seasons received above-average snowfall in the last 10 years
- The average total snowfall over the last 10 years was 47.9”, which is 8.6” below the yearly historical average, and 7.4” below the average of the last 30 years
Looking at this information, you may be thinking to yourself: “I know that we had more snow than that!”, and depending on where you live you may be right. Remember that DIA is about 25 miles from downtown, and this distance can lead to big differences in snowfall totals. While DIA reported 57.6″ of snow for the year, the weather observation site at the old Stapleton Airport, which is much closer to downtown, reported 71.4″. That’s more than an extra foot of total snow! Other locations around the Denver metro area reported different snowfall totals as well, including:
Credit: weather.gov
Although there were some areas that received above-average snow, the data still shows a worrying trend: winters are generally getting drier and drier over the years. 2010-2011, 2016-2017, and 2017-2018 all rank in the top 5 least snowy winters ever recorded in Denver. 2010-2020 is also the 2nd-driest decade ever recorded with 479” total snowfall; the driest decade on record is 2000-2010 with 475.5” total snowfall. Warmer and drier weather and shifting patterns of El Niño and La Niña are likely to blame for this downward trend; temperatures have risen about half a degree in the Denver area over the last 20 years compared to the historical average, and we have generally seen less moisture in recent years as well, especially in the fall.
What Does This Mean for Your Commercial Property?
While less average snowfall may be good for your winter snow clearing budget, snowstorms can still pop up at any moment. With the ability to drop large amounts of snow in a short time, snowstorms can cause huge headaches for anyone unprepared to respond at a moment’s notice. That’s why it’s important to have a professional snow and ice removal company like Snow Management Services to handle whatever winter throws at you. With 24-hour on-call snow plowing, de-icing, sidewalk management, and off-site snow hauling we protect our clients with true winter risk management services. Call us today at (303) 750-8867 or contact us online and see why property owners have trusted Snow Management Services for over 25 years.