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<br />Onl!~D <br /> <br />-l9- <br /> <br />IV cLIHATE <br /> <br />16. General Conditionsl <br /> <br />Although this report is ooooerned primarily with the climate <br />of the agrioultural area in the lowsr valley, it is of interest to note <br />the variation of olimatio conditions existing in the comparatively small <br />basin area of l,lOO square miles. <br /> <br />Conditions vary from the completely arid, near desert-like 011- <br />mate of the lower valley to the sub-artio weather of the high mountain <br />ranges. Wi thin a distanoe of 40 miles the ohange ranges from moderately <br />warm temperature and preoipitation of 8 to 10 inohes to low average tem- <br />perature and preoipitation of more than 30 inches a year. (Although <br />there are no rain gages at the higher elevations, runoff from that area <br />is in too mag;ni tude of 25 to 30 inohes per year, ~ioh is only a part of <br />the total preoipitation). Preoipitation at the higher elsvation is <br />ohiefly in the form of snow. <br /> <br />Intermediate between these tv.o extremes the variations are more <br />or less gradual from one to the other. ohanging with elevation. Over <br />most of the area there are no observation stations, but the clwl.ge in <br />vegetative oover and differenoe in agrioultural and stook raising prao- <br />tioes, together with observed runoff rates. is suffioient evidence of the <br />change in olimate. <br /> <br />17. Precipitationl <br /> <br />Records of preoipitation have been made at Montrose and Delta <br />sinoe 1885 and 1888 respeotively. These reoords show that the normal <br />annual preoipitation at Montrose is 9.62 inches and 8.22 inches at Delta. <br />The tabulations on the next following pages show the monthly and annual <br />variations at the too stations for the period 1903-l941. This 39-year <br />period oorresponds to the period of reoord for the flow of the Uncompah- <br />gre Hi vel' at Colone.. <br /> <br />Other preoipitation reoords in the basin are too short to be <br />of muoh value. A oanprehensive study of the distribution of rainfall <br />over the agricultural area of the lower valley was made during 1939, <br />1940 and part of 1941. D3tails of that :study are given in Part II. <br /> <br />l8. Temperature I <br /> <br />Reoords of tempernture have been maintained at both Montrose <br />and Delta, although for a slightly shorter period of time than for pre- <br />cipitation. Average annual temperature at Montrose is 48.5 degrees. <br />and at Delta is 50.2 degrees. <br />\ <br />