DWR_4151874 - Laserfiche WebLink

RIO GRANDE BASIN Basinwide Conditions Assessment The SWSI value of 2.0 indicates that for December the R I 0 GRANDE BASIN basin water supplies were above normal. The Natural s 5"r °at.r Supply ` "latorr Resources Conservation Service reports January 1 snowpack ,- as 118%of normal. Storage in Platoro,Rio Grande,and Santa a- 4 r., _ IL Maria reservoirs totaled 148% of normal on December 31. _ i Flow at thegaging station Rio Grande near Del Norte 2 • �},- 3 L averaged 236 cfs, as compared to the 1961-1993 December r--t ' : ' l average of 188 cfs. The Conejos River near Mogote had a i a 1-1-‘ff— i if t mean flow of 61 cfs, _ - - ' , 1 T. Weather conditions in the San Luis Valley during December were much warmer than average. The average monthly temperature of 22.6° in Alamosa was 5.1° above -.- normal. Temperatures ranged from a high of 45°to a low of- -4 . - , N NQ JANOS JANi7 JANOS JANOS J O JA , JAN22 JANQ3 JANW JANUS 4°. The average daily high was 38°and the average daily low - yew,. was 7°. The mean 1994 temperature in Alamosa was 1.0° above average. Alamosa received 0.07 inches of precipitation which was 0.37 inches below normal. - Looking back at the 1994 weather patterns in the valley reveals a cyclical year. Generally warmer than normal R l 0 GRANDE NR. DELNORTE temperatures for the first six months gave way to cooler FLOW EN MATES AAA conditions which continued until warming into a very mild "° " ,s° December. Snowfall in the local mountains also followed this „° . cyclical trend. Days of heavy snowfall were often followed by ,� even longer dry spells. The net result was below average snowpack in the upper Rio Grande basin that thawed quickly. a-I ,s. Stream flow in the Rio Grande and its upper tributaries was LL 1 90 mostly below average in 1994 and very poor from July 1" so -------------------: through September. Conditions in the Sangre de Cristo range i so and the Conejos River basin were better. Slightly above 5° a �— 40 average snow pack translated into near average stream flow in those drainages. Oet Nov Dee Jan Rob aaren • MAR" Administrative/Management Concerns `'�»' A AVG x ,ass Water officials remain cautiously optimistic that the • current conditions,consisting of above average snow pack and reservoir storage, plus the recent improvement in streams flow,will continue to assure adequate water supplies for the REPRESENTATIVE RESERVOIRS upcoming irrigation season. .5 A`°GRANDE MEIN`" °- . Public Use Impacts ,=- Winter sports activities were in full swing as adequate snow blanketed area mountains. i 30- _ 23- gr b g 2°- 3 I-, ,s / ,°_\//7.\\::\.\\, i ° Plo Grande Plater* Sant War la ® Avg. 12/31 Cont... ® 12/31/94!*ntESte 5