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COLORADO • WATER SUPPLY CONDITIONS UPDATE i FROM THE OFFICE OF THE STATE ENGINEER; COLORADO DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES February 1995 ROOM 818,1313 SHERMAN ST.,DENVER,CO 80203; (303)-866-3581 Continuing trends of previous months, the mountains in the southwestern drainage basins of the state have above average snow pack,with the snow pack in the remainder of the mountain drainage basins being below average. These snow pack conditions are reflected in the SWSI values for the respective basins given below. The Natural Resources Conservation . Service reports that statewide the snow pack averaged 89%of normal as of the end of January,which is a decrease from the 109% of average figure they reported for the end of December. They also indicate that typically 60% of the winter's snowpack has accumulated as of February 1. In general,reservoir storage amounts remain relatively good throughout most of the state. The Surface Water Supply Index (SWSI) developed by this office and the U.S.D.A.Natural Resources Conservation Service is used as an indicator of mountain based water supply conditions in the major river basins of the state. It is based on snowpack,reservoir storage,and precipitation for the winter period (November through April). During the winter period snowpack is the primary component in all basins except the South Platte basin where reservoir storage is given the most weight. The following SWSI values were computed for each of the seven major basins on February 1, 1995 and reflect conditions during the month of January. February 1, 1995 Change From Change From Basin SWSI Value Previous Month Previous Year South Platte -0.7 -0.1 -2.5 Arkansas -0.9 -0.2 -0.2 Rio Grande +2.3 +0.3 +4.2 Gunnison -0.1 -1.8 +1.8 Colorado -1.6 -0.8 -1.5 Yampa/White -1.9 -1.0 -0.6 San Juan/Dolores +1.3 -0.3 +3.9 SCALE -4 -3 -2 -1 0 +1 +2 +3 +4 Severe Moderate Near Normal Above Normal Abundant Drought Drought Supply Supply Supply 1