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2.04.8 Climatological Informat <br />• The closest active reporting station to the permit area is at Paonia, <br />Colorado, approximately 3# miles southwest of the permit area. <br />Information from this weather station is presented in Exhibit 6, Climate <br />Information. <br />The general description of the climate for western Colorado varies <br />substantially due to the rugged topography of the region. Extremes in <br />elevation cause large variations in climate. At mountain summits and in <br />high alpine meadows, summers are cool and winters are normally severe <br />with sub-zero temperatures. Temperatures tend to decrease and <br />precipitation tends to increase with increased elevation. Precipitation <br />falls from air of Pacific origin and occurs most frequently in the <br />winter half of the year. There is a winter maximum of precipitation <br />over the higher elevations of the region, with summer maximums at the <br />lower elevation locations. The climates of the local areas are affected <br />not only by altitude, but also by the orientation of the mountain ranges <br />• and the effect they have on the prevailing winds and local air <br />movements. <br />Along the North Fork of the Gunnison P.iver, in the vicinity of TCC, <br />elevations range from approximately 5,800 feet to over 8,000 immediately <br />north and south of the river valley. Specific weather data as collected <br />at the Paonia, Colorado, weather Station is shown in Exhibit 6, Climate <br />Information. This information includes monthly average precipitation, <br />monthly average temperature and wind information. The wind information <br />was developed for the Ptt. Gunnison minesite by the Atlantic Richfield <br />Company. <br />C~ <br />2.04-12 <br />