Laserfiche WebLink
<br />" <br />II <br />II <br />" <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br />;, <br />!' <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />Western States Water Council <br />Water Resources Committee Minutes <br /> <br />Sheridan, Wyoming <br />October 5, 2006 <br /> <br />experiments - seeded and not seeded events - to provide statistical verification. We will also use seeding <br />tracers to track agent dispersal, weather balloons, radiometers, aerial surveys, microphysical measurements <br />of clouds and aerosols, and other tools. Radiometers will evaluate the amount of Iiquified water in the <br />atmospheN, measuring radiation from water, and they can scan directionally. Two weather stations will also <br />be used for evaluation purposes. They are collaborating with other entities, and the Seven Colorado River <br />Basin Statl~s have earmarked $33,000 to assist in the leasing of monitoring (not seeding) equipment. They <br />are also looking to add another SNOTEL site. The pilot demonstration work will use remote controlled <br />ground generators and propane burners to deliver the seeding agent. They are still investigating the best <br />technique \to ensure a meaningful test to evaluate airborne seeding. <br /> <br />In addition to the Sierra Madre, Medicine Bow and Wind River Range, there is work going on in the <br />Salt River Range with North American Weather Consultants, out of Sandy, Utah, and the Desert Research <br />Institute in Reno, Nevada. Stakeholders in other areas are exploring funding opportunities, but while the pilot <br />studies in itarget areas are moving forward, the Commission will not be implementing operation programs <br />elsewhere. <br /> <br />The study is designed to demonstrate a link between increased snowfall from augmentation activities <br />and streamflow. The target areas have 20-years of record and subbasin records. There is an issue due to <br />beetle kill in the forests and the effects on runoff. There are other Wind River study complications. Other <br />challenges inc1ude a need for raptor perch guards, USES sensitive plant surveys, USFS site signage - USFS <br />management plans wouldn't allow an American flag on the signs, but the Wyoming Cowboy is okay - road <br />closures and reclamation work, viewshed issues - and scenic highway (generators must be 300 feet from a <br />roadway), and weather conditions affecting the placement and maintenance of equipment. <br /> <br />The objective is to provide real-time analysis after seeding, confirm a physical link between seeding <br />and runoff, and charting the chain of events. <br /> <br />Questions and Answers <br /> <br />Rod Kuharich: "Are you looking at any downwind effects?" <br /> <br />Barry: The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), in Boulder, Colorado will look at extra-area <br />effects. <br /> <br />Rod: "I mean any shadow effects." <br /> <br />Barry: "That is the most common question, and the effects will be included in evaluation plan. The <br />USFS Record of Decision on our special use permits will be precedent setting in the weather modification <br />world." <br /> <br />Glenn Patterson: "You said some storms would be seeded, some not. How do you evaluate storms and <br />seeding effects?" <br /> <br />Bruce Boe: "It is randomized decision to seed or not." <br /> <br />13 <br />