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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sufficient meteorological observation systems are currently available for credible operational decision making. . Given the number of precipitation and snowpack measurements within and near. the target area, the prospects for a viable evaluation of the effectiveness of the seeding project are good. 2.6.1 Proposed Target Area The proposed target area is defined as those areas within Gunnison County that lie above 9,000' MSL, with the exception of some smaller areas in the extreme southwest and northwest portions of the county. The location of the proposed target area is provided in Figure 2.11. These regions of the county receive significant natural precipitation during the winter time which normally accumulates as snowpack (refer to Tables 2-1 and 2-2). This snowpack provides a vast majority of the water for spring, summer and fall runoff in the various rivers and streams originating in these areas. 2.6.2 Operational Period The potential operational period is defined as the months of November through April. This period represents the primary winter snowpack accumulation period. October is not included since the normal precipitation in the target area is less than the other months (refer to Table 2-1) and the average 700mb temperatures (refer to Figure 2.9 ) are not as favorable for the use of silver iodide which begins to become active at -5 oC. April is included due to the amount of natural precipitation that occurs during the month and the fact that snowpack actually increases at some of the higher elevations of the proposed target area (refer to Table 2-2). The main barriers mean elevation along the eastern border of Gunnison County is approximately 12,000' MSL. Although there are no measurements of snowpack at 12,000', it is anticipated that snowpack increases in the 11,000' to 12,000' elevation range based upon extrapolation of the information for 21