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there is a great need for a mechanism to provide assistance to these communities, and <br />the businesses within these communities, which would be very similar to the <br />mechanism currently available for agricultural producers for drought. Currently, <br />there are several national drought- related initiatives being discussed, and it is <br />recommended that the tourism and recreation industry be a major component in each <br />of these national initiatives. <br />Summary <br />The appeal of Colorado tourism is in the diversity of outdoor recreational activities <br />throughout all seasons. A majority of tourist activities and resort communities rely on the <br />availability of water. Recent drought in Colorado brought issue of limited water resources <br />in the American West in the forefront. In many situations, this drought was a wake up <br />call prompting water managers to assess their preparedness for extended periods of <br />dryness and investigate regional cooperation in order to avid conflicts. This is particularly <br />important, because of the rapid mountain development as well as growing Front Range <br />population that has occurred in the past twenty years, and consequent increase in. water <br />demands. Significant impacts, with respect to the actual precipitation deficit showed that <br />Colorado's society, is now more vulnerable to short -term droughts then in the past <br />(Pielke, et al., 2004). Thinking about and participating in water conservation and <br />practicing it in the marginal lands is critical for :long -term sustainability. <br />Acknowledgement <br />Support from the Quick Response Grant, funded by the NSF though Natural Hazards <br />Center in Boulder, Colorado. The authors wish to thank all of those who participated in <br />the drought study and who shared their experiences with. us. <br />References: <br />Colorado Division. of Disaster. Emergency Services (1981) The Colorado Drought <br />Response Plan., <br />Hewitt, K. (1997). Regions at risk. a geographical introduction to disasters. England: <br />Addison Wesley Longman Limited. <br />Karl, T.R. 1983, Some Spatial Characteristics of Drought Duration in the United. States. <br />Journal of Climate and Applied Meteorology, 22, 1356 -1366. <br />Karl, T.R., F. Quilan, and D.D. Ezell. 1987. Drought Termination and Amelioration: its <br />Climatological Probability. Journal of Climate and Applied Meteorology, 26, 1198 -1209. <br />14 <br />