9521

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 9521
• Author: Liebermann, T. D., D. K. Mueller, J. E. Kircher and A. F. Choquette.
• Title: Characteristics and Trends of Streamflow and Dissolved Solids in the Upper Colorado River Basin, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.
• USFW Year: 1989.
• USFW - Doc Type: Denver.
• Copyright Material: NO

20
10
0
7500
5000
2500
0
3000
2000
1000
0
W 20,000
H 15,000
J 10,000
5000
ZQ 0
w
g 3000
2000
1000
0
A
- 1975-80 -
B
1950-83 -
C
1950-83 =
4-- 1
=D =
- 1947-62
= ---- 1965-83 .? =
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
E
1950-83 -
OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT
Figure 18. Mean daily streamflow at selected sites in middle Green subregion of Green region. A, Site 37,
Wilson Creek near Axial, Colo. B, Site 38, Yampa River near Maybell, Colo. C, Site 40, Little Snake River
near Lily, Colo. D, Site 41, Green River near Jensen, Utah. E, Site 43, Duchesne River near Randlett, Utah.
Little Snake River near Baggs, Wyo. (site 39)
The main fork of the Little Snake River begins in the
mountains, but most of the river basin is in the semiarid
Washakie basin. Site 39 (table 3, pl. 1) has a well-defined
snowmelt-runoff peak, but the river often dries up in late
summer from irrigation depletions. Calcium and bicarbonate
are the predominant ions during March-September; calcium,
sodium, and bicarbonate predominate during the base-flow
months.
Little Snake River near Lily, Colo. (site 40)
The streamflow hydrograph for site 40 (table 3, pl. 1)
shows a well-defined snowmelt-runoff peak, slightly flattened
by irrigation withdrawals (fig. 18C). As at site 39, the river
often dries up during late summer because of irrigation deple-
tions. Mean annual streamflow at site 40 is 403,000 acre-ft,
essentially the same as at site 39, but the mean annual flow-
weighted dissolved-solids concentration increases from 138
mg/L to 195 mg/L between the two sites (table 7). The Little
Snake River merges with the Yampa River downstream from
Maybell, Colo., resulting in an annual streamflow for the
Yampa River of about 1.5 million acre-ft, approximately
equal to the annual streamflow at site 34 on the Green River.
The chemical composition of the Little Snake River at site
40 is principally calcium, sodium, sulfate, and bicarbonate,
which are contributed by the Tertiary formations in the
Washakie basin. During August and September, when
42 Characteristics and Trends of Streamflow and Dissolved Solids in the Colorado River Basin