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1 1 Environmental Scientists and Engineers. LLC The climate of the area can be described as typical of a semi -arid, continental, mid - latitude region with warm summers and cold winters characterized by high diurnal and seasonal temperature variations. The low relative humidity usually make the hot summer days pleasant. The summer nights are generally cool because of strong out -going terrestrial radiation. The combination of dry air and strong solar radiation tempers the cold temperatures of winter days. The flow of Pacific air dominating the climate descends into the area as a warming and drying mass after depositing its moisture over the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Mountains. This generally creates a large rain shadow effect over Nevada, Utah, and western Colorado. Intense cold waves are unusual because of the barriers created by the mountains of the Continental Divide. Generally, severe storms and low pressure systems bypass the region by deflecting north or south over lower elevations of the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming and New Mexico, respectively. The predominant air mass over the Rocky Mountains during the winter is usually continental polar and sometimes maritime polar and produces cold, dry air during storm -free periods. High pressure systems that result in fine, light, powdery snow tend to become established in winter over the region which lies within the mean winter storm track. During the summer months, the air masses are generally maritime polar and, much less often, continental tropical. This region is usually south of the main storm track in the summer; however, localized thundershowers do occur primarily during the afternoon, if a moisture supply is available either locally or in the air mass. Precipitation Precipitation information for Craig and Meeker is shown in Table 1, which shows that it is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. ' Data from Climatography of the United States No. 81 (Colorado): Monthly Normals of Temperature, Precipitation, and Heating and Cooling Degree Days 1941 -70, U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 2 Craig, Colorado weather station, Lat. N4031, Long. W10733, Elev. 6,285 ft. ' Meeker, Colorado weater station, Lat. N4002, Long. W10754, Elev. 6,242 ft. Temperature Temperature data for Craig and Meeker are presented in Table 2. Based on data collected by the United States Department of Commerce, the mean annual temperature of Craig is 42.4 °F while the mean annual temperature at Meeker is 44.2 °F. P..PROJECTS•Colrwyo.61S8.EA Finat al.11- '- E.- Colkan off 01',.o dot: Table 1 Precipitation Monthly Normals (1941 -1970) 16 'Monthly;Mean Precipitation (inches Location Jan Feb Mar ` Apr May,g ,Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct. Nov;: Deco Yearl Normals Craig` 0.92 0.83 0.95 1.40 1.36 1.38 0.97 1.51 1.09 1.32 0.94 1.11 13.78 Meeker' 1.22 1.15 1.43 1.72 1.43 1.49 1.47 1.95 1.24 1.52 1.14 1.30 17.06 1 1 Environmental Scientists and Engineers. LLC The climate of the area can be described as typical of a semi -arid, continental, mid - latitude region with warm summers and cold winters characterized by high diurnal and seasonal temperature variations. The low relative humidity usually make the hot summer days pleasant. The summer nights are generally cool because of strong out -going terrestrial radiation. The combination of dry air and strong solar radiation tempers the cold temperatures of winter days. The flow of Pacific air dominating the climate descends into the area as a warming and drying mass after depositing its moisture over the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Mountains. This generally creates a large rain shadow effect over Nevada, Utah, and western Colorado. Intense cold waves are unusual because of the barriers created by the mountains of the Continental Divide. Generally, severe storms and low pressure systems bypass the region by deflecting north or south over lower elevations of the Rocky Mountains in Wyoming and New Mexico, respectively. The predominant air mass over the Rocky Mountains during the winter is usually continental polar and sometimes maritime polar and produces cold, dry air during storm -free periods. High pressure systems that result in fine, light, powdery snow tend to become established in winter over the region which lies within the mean winter storm track. During the summer months, the air masses are generally maritime polar and, much less often, continental tropical. This region is usually south of the main storm track in the summer; however, localized thundershowers do occur primarily during the afternoon, if a moisture supply is available either locally or in the air mass. Precipitation Precipitation information for Craig and Meeker is shown in Table 1, which shows that it is fairly evenly distributed throughout the year. ' Data from Climatography of the United States No. 81 (Colorado): Monthly Normals of Temperature, Precipitation, and Heating and Cooling Degree Days 1941 -70, U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 2 Craig, Colorado weather station, Lat. N4031, Long. W10733, Elev. 6,285 ft. ' Meeker, Colorado weater station, Lat. N4002, Long. W10754, Elev. 6,242 ft. Temperature Temperature data for Craig and Meeker are presented in Table 2. Based on data collected by the United States Department of Commerce, the mean annual temperature of Craig is 42.4 °F while the mean annual temperature at Meeker is 44.2 °F. P..PROJECTS•Colrwyo.61S8.EA Finat al.11- '- E.- Colkan off 01',.o dot: Table 1 Precipitation Monthly Normals (1941 -1970) 16