Every state, including Hawaii,, gets some snow. In the

Every state, including Hawaii,, gets some snow. In the agricultural West, a deep snowfall is like white gofd. Snow provides water for irrigation, drinking, and power. From January to May, sqo.w surveyors trudge through white drifts piled on high western mountains. Th^y measure the snow's depth and moisture content to estimate the amount of water that will flow into valleys in spring and summer. . Snow measurements are regarded as an essential part of agricultural planning. For instance, farmers on a 70,000 acre tract in central Idaho saved an estimated $300,000 in two years by matching crop acreage to the expected wat£r supply. ; ; | In the metropolitan East, however, a snowfall can be unbelievably expensive. Snow paralyzes traffic, disrupts communications, isolates sub urbs, and closes schools. The great storms in January, 1966 cost one city—the Nation's Capital — almost a million dollars.