General Alaska Water Facts

  • Alaska has more than 40% of the entire nation's surface water resources
  • About three-fourths of all fresh water in Alaska is stored as glacial ice that covers nearly 5% of the state
  • Alaska has more than three million lakes, over 12,000 rivers, thousands of streams and creeks, and an estimated 100,000 glaciers
  • Longest River---------------------Yukon River, 1,280 miles in Alaska, draining 204,000 square miles
  • Largest Lake---------------------Iliamna Lake, 1,115 square miles
  • Largest Glacier---------------------Malaspina Glacier, 850 square miles
  • Highest Average Annual Precipitation---------------------220 inches, Little Port Walter, S.E. Alaska
  • Lowest Average Annual Precipitation---------------------4.8 inches, Barrow, Arctic Slope, Alaska
  • Greatest 24-Hour Precipitation---------------------15.2 inches, Angoon, S.E. Alaska
  • Highest Average Annual Snowfall---------------------540 inches, Thompson Pass
  • Greatest 24-Hour Snowfall---------------------62 inches, Thompson Pass
  • Statewide Average Annual Precipitation---------------------1,050,000 million gallons per day
  • Statewide Average Consumptive Water Use---------------------27 million gallons per day
  • Alaska Surface Water Inflow---------------------152,000 million gallons per day
  • Alaska Surface Water Outflow---------------------989,000 million gallons per day
  • Normal Reservoir Storage---------------------1.8 million acre-feet
  • Total Estimated Water Use--406 million gallons per day, 82% surface water, 18% groundwater
  • Greatest Daily Tidal Range---------------------38.9 feet, Upper Cook Inlet
  • Alaska Total Land Area---------------------586,000 square miles