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<br />003185 <br /> <br />has the potential to not only enhance water quantity, but also improve water quality, For <br />example, studies have shown that additional runoff from snowmelt in the Colorado River can <br />significantly reduce salinity. <br /> <br />Cloud seeding is an attractive approach to streamflow augmentation and water quality <br />improvement because it does not require major permanent construction or large fixed operation <br />and maintenance costs. A decision to employ cloud seeding can be made on a year-to-year basis <br />or even on a storm-to-storm basis within a season. More importantly, cloud seeding potentially <br />is one of the most cost-effective means for securing additional water in the Basin. Other options <br />are importation, desalination, evaporation suppression, and vegetation management. <br />Importation and desalination have high construction costs. Current evaporation suppression <br />technology is not adequate for reservoirs on the Colorado River. Vegetation management <br />appears to be effective, for example, by cutting clearings within forest (Alexander et al., 1985). <br />However, opportunities for such manipulation may be limited. <br /> <br />Because the technology of cloud seeding has not been scientifically demonstrated as an effective <br />water management tool, many potential users are reluctant to apply it. Cloud seeding's <br />effectiveness in enhancing snowfall will continue to be questioned until adequate evidence is <br />obtained and published in refereed scientific literature where it can be given full scrutiny. After <br />the evidence withstands full examination, water users can be confident that cloud seeding is a <br />viable means of providing significant quantities of new water in a safe, cost-effective manner. <br />Thereafter, the technology likely will gain more widespread acceptance. <br /> <br />1.3 Program Purpose and Overview <br /> <br />The program proposed in this document is intended to provide convincing scientific evidence <br />that properly conducted seeding of winter orographic (mountain-induced) clouds can <br />significantly increase precipitation (snowfall) at two Upper Colorado River Basin (hereafter <br />Basin) locations. The magnitude of possible increases also will be documented. Once cloud <br />seeding is shown to have a firm scientific basis, potential users will be able to transfer the <br />technology to their specific area of interest. Some adaptation may be required for regions <br />outside the Basin if they have significantly different cloud and/or terrain characteristics. <br /> <br />The proposed name for this program is the CREST (Colorado River Enhanced Snowpack Test), <br />The first year of the proposed program will be devoted to initiation of environmental compliance <br />activities for the two experimental areas, and to equipment and contract procurement. No cloud <br />seeding will take place until environmental compliance is accomplished. <br /> <br />The first program phase involving seeding will concentrate on comprehensive "direct detection" <br />cloud seeding experiments that will monitor the important links in the chain of physical events <br />following seeding. For AgI (silver iodide) seeding, important links include: <br /> <br />. The reliable production of the seeding agent by remote-controlled AgI generators. <br />. T&D (transport and dispersion) of the seeding agent into SLW (supercooled liquid water) <br />orographic cloud. . <br />. Nucleation of appropriate concentrations of ice crystals by the AgI. <br />. Growth of seeded ice crystals into snowflakes and snow pellets (graupe!). <br />. Fallout of the largest ice particles onto the surface while crossing the mountain barrier, <br /> <br />2 <br />