# Dust on Snow: a good summary



## Meng (Oct 25, 2003)

*From The Aspen Times:
*

*That dust on the snow around Aspen is bad, researchers say*

Photo: http://www.aspentimes.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=AT&Date=20100413&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=100419966&Ref=AR&MaxW=550&title=1

ASPEN — The red dust blanketing area mountains and virtually every surface in Aspen is a result of oil and gas development and off-road vehicle activity in southeastern Utah, according to David Garbett, staff attorney with Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.

He informed the Aspen City Council on Monday of the effects the dust has on the community.

The snow stained by dust melts faster because it absorbs more solar energy, which affects the snowpack in Aspen and surrounding areas.

Garbett said that in 2005 and 2006, dusty snow melted 18 to 35 days earlier in Colorado's San Juan Mountains. Last year, dust-covered snow melted 48 days earlier in the same area, he added.

“Dustier snow has a larger impact than temperatures,” he said of the snowpack.

Beyond an expedited snowpack and quicker spring runoff, dust-covered snow affects Aspen's water supply, officials said.

The city's water department has to spend more money in increased treatment chemicals to remove the dust, which resists coagulation. It makes its way through the city's filters and is difficult to remove, according to city officials.

“Water treatment plants in Colorado are experiencing this phenomena throughout areas affected by these storms,” wrote Chuck Bailey, the city's water treatment plant supervisor, in an e-mail regarding the issue. “It is usually temporary during spring/summer runoff, but still a new challenge to us.”

Destabilization of the soil on the Colorado Plateau in Utah is the primary cause of the local dust storms, contrary to other reports that it's from rockslides in Mexico or weather events as far away as Mongolia, Garbett said.

Garbett and his colleague, Terri Martin, urged the council to support America's Red Rock Wilderness Act, introduced by Colorado Sens. Mark Udall and Michael Bennet, which seeks to protect wilderness areas in Utah from off-road use, oil and gas development and other destabilizing activities.

The Bureau of Land Management and the federal government control the wilderness area on the Colorado Plateau, where the dust is believed to be carried to the Roaring Fork Valley via windstorms.

The BLM recently approved 20,000 miles of off-road vehicles routes on the plateau and made 80 percent of its lands in that area available for oil and gas leasing and development, according to the Alliance.

“Sensitive lands in Utah ought to be protected,” Garbett said of the pending wilderness act. “It's the perfect time for the council to weigh in.”

Mayor Mick Ireland said the council will consider it.

“I think it's a good idea,” he said, adding the dust lining the mountains around Ruedi Reservoir provides a spectacular example of the effects of last week's storm.

“It's unbelievable at Ruedi, it's like ‘The Cat in the Hat' ... uniformly pink,” Ireland said. “It's beautiful in a sort of a science fiction way. It's bizarre.”

Another dust storm was expected to hit the Roaring Fork Valley late Monday night and into Tuesday. 

A blowing dust advisory for south-central Colorado and portions of western Colorado was issued by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment on Monday.

A cold front was expected to move across Utah and Arizona, generating strong south-southwesterly winds with gusts potentially reaching 50 mph.

The strong winds were expected to cause blowing dust in parts of Arizona, Utah, New Mexico and Colorado, which could be transported long distances, causing hazy skies and restricted visibility at times even in areas where the winds are lighter. 

The state health department warned that the elderly, the young and those with respiratory problems should avoid prolonged exertion and limit outdoor exposure during dust storms.

[email protected]


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## Canada (Oct 24, 2006)

I'm calling total BS in the advancement of a political agenda. I just went to wash off the heavy dust on my cars and I am to the west of the area he is saying led to the dust storms!! I'll buy into the idea it might be exacerbated by global warming, but come on man.


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## Meng (Oct 25, 2003)

Not sure what the political agenda is - the article is talking about complex resource management issues and of course, certain recommendations will ensue. Things effect other things and so on. When addressing them, or when scientific/interest group reccomendations become a BS political agenda, the I guess we are resorting to conservative evangelical palinism/creationism.

Really though, all I wanted to let boaters know about here is the tangible and documented early runoff regimes. It could help plan the season better. Also, its good to know what the costs to municipalities are. If actions in one state so dramatically effect another state, the issue needs to be acknowledged and addressed.

Of course, I cant personally defend the science and recommendations in this article, I was just sharing.

PS - If you think the article is total BS, I'd feel free to comment accordingly on the Aspen Times website etc...


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## Canada (Oct 24, 2006)

*Not attacking you*

I just found it funny that he was tieing this to use and development in Utah, when I live on the north western edge of that state and we had the same hazy days and dust. His comment that dirty snow melts faster, I buy. His causation of the dust and tieing it to specific development and use issues in southern utah I won't. Might have contributed, but not "the" issue.

Sorry that I didn't specify. Not invested enough to go fight it out with the people in Aspen.


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## DurangoSteve (Jun 2, 2006)

I was just looking at a friend's skiing pix from last weekend up above Animas Forks. The snow looked pretty darned pink. Hope this year's snowpack doesn't melt as fast as last year's. As to SUWA's claims, sounds like a messy blend of fact, fiction and emotion. How about overgrazing on Utah's public lands? I'd say that absolutely factors in... along with climate change, the primary cause.


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## Meng (Oct 25, 2003)

THE CAUSE (and if you make me dig up backing for this I can) is TOPSOIL DISTURBANCE.

Here's how it works:

In native form, the desert dust is held down by plants/roots/brush.

When that is removed from disturbance like overgrazing, oil and gas and ohv's, the dust becomes available for easy transport.

Its then picked up by normal winds and gets deposited on the mountain ranges it hits

Where it comes from CAN vary. However, with soil samples, scientists can pinpoint exact regions.

...or something like that

Peace all - I'm seriously not trying to push an agenda or start any shit here.

PS - this is what the west elks near crested butte look like

PPS - Canada - sorry to jump the gun and getting defensive. I hear ya....

PPPS - I do recant somewhat. Canada. You are right - 'they' do seem to be using the dust as an agenda item for the wilderness area they are pushing.


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## DurangoSteve (Jun 2, 2006)

Meng said:


> THE CAUSE (and if you make me dig up backing for this I can) is TOPSOIL DISTURBANCE.


Kinda hard to argue that!


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## brendodendo (Jul 18, 2004)

I'll buy that "most" of the red dust that is deposited in Colorado via storm activity is related to top soil disruption in "other" western states. To be blunt, I do not buy the theory that the major contributors to this are oil and gas and OHV use. I will admit that they contribute. That being said, the is credible evidence that this latest pastern of dust / storm activity is from the earthquake recently in Mexico. It injected tons of brown dirt into the jetstream that was then deposited here. The Elk range is covered in mostly brown dirt, not red as would be associated with western Utah.

As to the political agenda of the Aspen Times, they are a contributing supporter of the Wilderness Workshop (Hidden Gems). They are located in a town that is relatively biased to OHV and the Oil and Gas industry. Looking at these facts, it is no wonder that they attribute "all" dust activity on these activities. I don't buy half of what Aspen Times and their sister papers print any more. This is true of all papers, they have a bias and they stick to it.

Anyway that it happens, the dust is no good for our run off patterns and will contribute to a faster melt. 

Blast me if you want.


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## peak (Apr 7, 2006)

I'm all for SUWA, but having a lawyer blame OHVs for dust in *Aspen* was probably not their best move...sure the dust will accellerate snowmelt which is not really a good thing, but isn't it a little more complicated than that? 

I personally think the wind had a lot to do with it...;-)


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## Meng (Oct 25, 2003)

brendodendo said:


> As to the political agenda of the Aspen Times, they are a contributing supporter of the Wilderness Workshop (Hidden Gems). They are located in a town that is relatively biased to OHV and the Oil and Gas industry. Looking at these facts, it is no wonder that they attribute "all" dust activity on these activities.


I think you provide a good read into the local politics behind the article's tone. And you are right - 'all' dust activity can not be credibly attributed to only certain factors, disturbances or areas.


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## alanbol (Jun 3, 2005)

*Use the google, get some facts...*

Seems a little premature to blame OHVs and oil/gas development exclusively. See below.

https://wsprod.colostate.edu/cwis312/hydrologydays/Papers_2010/Phillips_paper.pdf
Colorado Alpine Dust Deposition and Associated Continental Winds
Morgan Phillips, Colorado Climate Center and Bureau of Land Management

Abstract. The winter and early spring of 2008-2009 brought an unusually high number of alpine dust deposition events to the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. The greatest dust accumulations were observed in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. Significant dust accumulation was even observed along the Continental Divide in northern Colorado. The primary source for this dust has previously been identified as the Colorado Plateau. Analysis using the HYSPLIT(Hybrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory) atmospheric trajectory model along with satellite imagery showed that dust from the 2009 events also originated from the Colorado Plateau, especially from areas in and around northeastern Arizona that were experiencing drought conditions this spring.


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## samsara (Jan 15, 2010)

Lots of sources for the dust events we've had over the last few years. Everything from China to the Colorado Plateau. Overgrazing and drought are the big ones by far, but road building and other soil disturbance for the oil and gas industry as well as unregulated, irresponsible OHV use are contributors too. All this is fairly well studied. 

Remember the big I-70 pileup near Grand Junction years ago? It was caused by a localized dust storm that originated from the big OHV play are near the highway. I've driven by that area when it's windy and the dust is blowing several times so I have no doubt that desertification (loss of plant cover and soil pulverization) due to OHV use is not on the same scale as overgrazing from a large scale landscape point of view, but it's nothing to be poo-pooed either.


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## Jahve (Oct 31, 2003)

"according to David Garbett, staff attorney with Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance." Maybe he has other motives here maybe not just sayin .. 

I think that I will trust the opinion of Russ Schnell the director of observatory ops at NOAA (national oceanic and atmospheric adminstration) or that of NASA over that of a random wilderness attorney......

So here is another take and a pic of dust movin over Paige Az....











Here is dust as it came over the Grand Canyon...









Another pic as the dust is headin out of China..











Interesting Facts..


Wind blown dust originating from the arid deserts of Mongolia and China is a well-known springtime meteorological phenomenon throughout East Asia. In fact, "yellow sand" meteorological conditions are sufficiently common to have acquired local names: Huangsha in China, Whangsa in Korea, and Kosa in Japan.

Suspended clouds of Asian dust can move across the Pacific in elevated layers (3-11 km agl) and can reach the U.S. in as little as 4-6 days.

The dust clouds finally dissipate when the particles are removed from the atmosphere by dry and wet removal processes. Gravitational settling of large particles (>10 m m) occurs near the source within the first day of transport. Wet removal occurs sporadically throughout the 5-10 day lifetime of the remaining smaller size dust particles.
 




More on the dust...



_Scripps Howard News Service_


- Poor farming practices, population pressures and drought are intensifying dust storms in China that some scientists and environmentalists believe may ultimately pose a significant pollution problem for the United States. 
The situation gained dramatic attention in April when a giant Chinese dust storm tracked by weather satellites invaded North America, raining dust and other pollution as it blew eastward. 


The dust cloud, measuring thousands of square miles, formed on the desert border of northwestern China and Mongolia. Over the next two weeks it moved across the Pacific Ocean and North America, blanketing large portions of the western United States and Canada as well as areas of New England with a white haze. It dissipated over the Atlantic Ocean halfway to Europe. 


Dust storms have long been a major environmental and health concern not only for China but also Japan and Korea, where they are called "yellow dust." But scientists had never before tracked such a large and intense storm into North America. 
"We are seeing that even the largest ocean in the world isn't a sufficient barrier to prevent pollution from crossing the sea," said Lester Brown, president of the Earth Policy Institute. 


The storms gather and push air pollutants in front of them, including methane, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, said Russ Schnell, director of observatory operations at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, whose satellites tracked the storms. 


The storm "was very intense and it brought a lot of things with it ... this big glob of pollution," Schnell said. "Like a motorboat in a lake, it pushes what's in front of it." 
Dust itself is also a pollutant, especially particles that are small enough to be inhaled and cause respiratory problems. 


Right now, the dust clouds are not a serious pollution threat to the United States. But that could easily change as the economies of Asia grow and consume more energy, which increases the pollution that gets caught up in the storms, Schnell said. 
The storms are an "early signal" of even greater problems to come as a result of widespread environmental degradation in northern China, including poor farming practices that have increased deforestation and desertification and severely strained water resources, Brown said. 


More than 1 million square miles of China is desert, and nearly 1,000 square miles is lost to sand each year. At least 400 Chinese cities are short of water. 
The Chinese government has announced a $22 billion tree-planting program in the nation's northern provinces, including a 2,000-mile-long tree berm aimed at holding back the encroaching Gobi Desert. Chinese officials have also announced a new five-year economic plan that calls for industry to recycle more water. 
However, "it's going to take a much larger effort" to turn the problem around, Brown said. If not corrected, China could lose large areas of cropland to desert, which would force the dislocation of tens of millions of Chinese. 

Not all the dust storms plaguing North America come from Asia. Dust storms from Africa can rise up to 20,000 feet and are carried by trade winds across the Atlantic to the United States. 


Every few years, fine red-brown dust from Africa will fill the skies over Florida and some other East Coast states at levels just shy of violating the standard for fine particulate matter under the Clean Air Act, said Joseph Prospero, director of the Institute for Cooperative Marine and Atmospheric Studies at the University of Miami. 
The Environmental Protection Agency's standard for fine particulate matter is no more than 65 micrograms per cubic meter. Africa dust clouds over Florida frequently reach 50 micrograms, Prospero said. 


The "mother of all dust sources in the world" is an area of northern Chad in what is known as the Bodele depression, Prospero said. With satellite imagery, "you can just see this thing putting out dust day after day - very specific plumes," he said. 

Sometimes the dust even gets to the French Alps.... 




Oh yea and this is from NASA but what do they know....



Scientists Dust Off Desert Sands from the French Alps 

NASA funded scientists, using an atmospheric computer model, proved for the first time dust from China's TaklaMakan desert traveled more than 12,400 miles (20,000 kilometers) over two weeks and landed on the French Alps. Chinese dust plumes have reached North America and Greenland, but had not been reported in Europe. 

The findings are highlighted in a paper authored by Francis E. Grousset of the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University (LDEOCU), Palisades, N.Y., and Universite Bordeaux, France; Aloys Bory and Pierre E. Biscaye, also of LDEOCU; and Paul Ginoux, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) and NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, Md. The study appeared in a recent issue of the American Geophysical Union's Geophysical Research Letters. 

"The dust particles traveled around the world in about two weeks, and along their journey, crossed China, the North Pacific, North America and the North Atlantic Ocean," Ginoux said. 

Research conducted showed a score of red dust events coated the snow cover in the French Alps and Pyrenees mountains. The red dust topping these European mountain ranges was sampled and stored in bags for comparison with dust from other parts of the world. Scientists analyze the minerals and compositions of certain distinctive elements (isotopes) of the dust to identify its origin. Information about the origins and final locations of dust are important to help determine any effects from heavy metal, fungal, bacterial and viral distribution that may be associated with it. 
Ginoux and his colleagues used NASA technology and support in their research. Meteorological information, such as wind speed and direction, precipitation, air pressure, and temperature, were put into a computer model. The model recreated how the atmosphere moved as the dust traveled from China to the Alps. The meteorological information was from GSFC's Earth Observing System Data Assimilation System. 
Several computer models, simulating the movement of dust in the atmosphere, were used to track its journey in this study. The Global Ozone Chemistry Aerosol Radiation Transport computer model, largely funded by NASA, uses the winds, soil moisture, and surface characteristics to simulate dust generation and transport. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Air Resources Laboratory (ARL), provided models showing the paths of air masses, as they moved around the world, from the time the dust was swept into the atmosphere to when it settled on the Alps. 

ARL can project where air pollution will move based on meteorological conditions. NOAA's National Weather Service National Center for Environmental Prediction re-analyzed global meteorological conditions and plotted the dust movement to verify the computer models. 
This research was funded by France's National Center for Scientific Research, NASA's Earth Science Enterprise (ESE), and the National Science Foundation. NASA's ESE is dedicated to understanding the Earth as an integrated system and applying Earth System Science to improve prediction of climate, weather and natural hazards using the unique vantage point of space.


I could also post a bunch of pics from Lake Powell as the dust moved over the Lake and got all the million dollar boats dirty..

I think there are many reasons we are getting this dust layer and I would say the attorney in this case did a good job of getting a half truth at best out.


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## Canada (Oct 24, 2006)

Thank you for making my point with facts. OHV and the pursuit of natural gas are small time contributors to a very big problem. 
Growing up, my family and I raced on the rocky mountain enduro circuit. Motorcycles were a big part of my life. I now can't stand OHV's. I've been sitting in the middle of the elk creek wilderness on three occaisions and had idiots ride up on them. I have been calling in turkeys, to have idiots come cross country up and place themselves between the bird and me on their four wheelers. I have been camped at sections of cottonwood creek and watched kids destroying meadows clearly marked no motor vehicles while their parents sat and watched. I have come to hate OHV's, but I can't blame them for the dust on the snow.

I should note that my venom on this subject is not held towards snow mobiles. For some reason, their operators seem to have the ability to follow rules a little better than the so many three and four wheeler tools. Anyway, enough ranting today!!


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## greenwater780 (May 31, 2007)

*Dust sources*

I was in South East Utah during three separate dust storms that eventually dropped significant amounts of dust across the Four Corners including my home town of Durango. In each case the wind blew hard (20-30 mph sustained) for nearly 24 hours and picked up a tremendous amount of dust. Visibility was less than a mile. Anyone familiar with this area is aware that much of the desert especially the river flood plains are covered in fine grained, easily disturbed particles. There is no way all of this dust was from extra OHV trails or drilling roads. Overgrazing, which is rampant on BLM lands, would have a much greater impact. Either way if you blast the desert with high wind for hours at a time, you will get dust.

Even with the overgrazing problem it is important to recognize that dust storms in the Four Corners are a natural occurrence. There is a reason that the first several inches of topsoil from Monticello to Durango contains, or is comprised of loess. Wind blown particles. I would only caution to stick to the science and keep the big picture in mind. Pointing fingers before having a comprehensive body of evidence can be divisive.

By the way I am a SUWA member and appreciate very much what they do for the Southwest. I am also a motorcycle rider and am very aware of the damage OHV abuse can cause. A little personal responsibility can go a long way.


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## dustin.heron (Aug 17, 2008)

*Position of Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies*

I recently wrote Chris Landry, Executive Director of the Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies in Silverton, about this. I was curious what the source of the snow was as I had heard Mongolia, Mexico, etc. Here is his reply: 

Dustin -

Thanks for the note ... I've got just enough time today to let you know that this dust is not from China, it's from the greater Colorado Plateau of SE and E'rn Utah, NE Arizona, NW New Mexico, and SW Colorado. We know that from detailed chemical and other analyses, and actual satellite imagery of the events in progress.

Check out our website for a list of pubs about this dust ...

Cheers,
Chris Landry – Exec. Dir.
Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies
Silverton, CO
www.snowstudies.org

As for dust in NW Utah, it's likely from a different source. Their analysis pertains to Silverton and points "down-weather" of there, I would assume. The Ark Valley included. Here's what Mt. Columbia looked like after the storm: South Main | Facebook


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## DanOrion (Jun 8, 2004)

Chris is quite the guy on DOS....yep source is Colo Plateau. It is not a new phenomenon; samples from San Juan lake beds show that dust accumulation rates peaked about 100 years ago after widespread grazing and railroads on the Colo Plateau. Anecdotal evidence suggests that dust is more common recently than in the past; but nobody has confirmed that there are statistically significantly recent trends. I understand that the Asspen Times corrected their story. Snow with dust absorbs about 50% of solar radiation compared to 5% by pure white snow. Snow with dust melts 30 - 50 days sooner than pure snow.

This morning, my truck had a layer of red snow on it. Runoff is not far away.


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## rivermanryan (Oct 30, 2003)

Chris has study areas around Colorado. Their main station is just north of Red Mountain Pass, but they also monitor sites for dust from the Steamboat area to Wolf Creek Pass.


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## lmyers (Jun 10, 2008)

DanOrion said:


> This morning, my truck had a layer of red snow on it. Runoff is not far away.


Yep, had another layer of dust in BV this morning...at least in town, I would imagine it is in the hills too.


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## rivermanryan (Oct 30, 2003)

Just in from CODOS:

_Greetings from Silverton on Thursday afternoon, April 29th. I've spoken to many of you by phone today ... apologies to the rest of you for the delay in this Alert ... the CSAS's email service provider crashed yesterday so I'm sending this using my new staffer's, Kim Buck, gmail account. Please reply, if you wish, to my normal email address: __[email protected]__. We'll hope that my service is restored soon. 

As may have been self evident to many of you, the western San Juan Mountains, at least, and I suspect most Colorado mountain ranges and locales experienced a substantial dust storm and dust-on-snow deposition event yesterday afternoon, and perhaps continue to do so this morning. We we will label this event as D6-WY2010. We first observed dust in the air in the early afternoon yesterday (Wednesday) here in Silverton and then winds and dust intensified throughout the remainder of the daylight hours and into the night, as a largely "dry" dust storm, with only an occasional sprinkle of muddy rain. Our Putney study plot recorded a peak gust of 96 mph in the early morning today, and winds continue to average 40-50 mph at that location. Measureable precipitation began, as snow, at our Swamp Angel Study Plot at Red Mountain Pass just at dawn this morning and that new snow may also contain dust, given that wind direction remains SW'ly.

On our N'ly and E'ly aspects here in the San Juans this event, D6 fell on top of the layer of clean snow that fell last week and weekend (Storms #21 and #22 of the season). That clean snow layer had been rapidly thinning so the separation of D6 from the already merged D5/D4/D3/D2 layer may be small in many locations. At lower elevations and on S'ly and W'ly aspects D6 did land directly on that exposed merged D5/D4/D3/D2 surface. Although we have no first-hand reports, I suspect a similar scenario was ocurring farther to the north and east of the San Juans, in the Central mountains and on Grand Mesa. In the northernmost ranges, where recent storms left behind substantially more new snow than we received here, D6 (where it was received) may be widely separated from the D5/D4/D3/D2 merged layer we observed in mid-April.

The National Weather Service anticipates a wide range of new snow accumulations over the next 48 hours of from 12-18" in the north, at Rabbit Ears Pass, to just a few inches at Berthoud and Loveland Passes, to 9-14" at Schofield Pass, to 8-17" at our study site on Grand Mesa, to 6-14" at Red Mountain Pass, to just a few inches at Wolf Creek Pass. It appears that unsettled weather through the weekend COULD, if those forecasts verify, reduce the incoming solar radiation reaching the Colorado snowpack and any exposed or thinly covered dust until early or the middle of next week, when high pressure eventually returns to the desert southwest. But, in many areas the D6 layer may remain exposed due to wind stripping, or as are result of minimal new snow amounts

The CODOS team will be able to confirm the presence/absence of the D6 layer, and it's position relative to the existing D5/D4/D3/D2 layer(s), and to the snowpack surface, during our tour of the eleven CODOS monitoring sites beginning on Monday, May 3rd. 

More soon,
Chris_


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## mr. compassionate (Jan 13, 2006)

Wow, I've never experienced so much dust in the precip as overnight and this a.m. Would love to see pictures of fresh tracks this a.m. it must really show up


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## basil (Nov 20, 2005)

I support environmentalist causes, but this misinformation hurts everyone:


> The red dust blanketing area mountains is a result of oil and gas development and off-road vehicle activity in southeastern Utah, according to David Garbett, staff attorney with Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.


I want valid info, not hype Sarah Palin would be proud of. I'll flip the bozo bit on this guy and organization. 
Shame on the Aspen newspaper for reprinting it.


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## DanOrion (Jun 8, 2004)

A half-asspened correction:

Correction: There were errors in the original version of this story, which appears below. While oil and gas development and off-road activities are sources of the dust, they are not the only ones. And those soil-destabilizing activities occur on the Colorado Plateau, which includes parts of Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. Colorado Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet are co-sponsors of America's Red Rock Wilderness Act. The Bureau of Land Management doesn't have any protected wilderness in Southeast Utah.

 Correction .

Go here for the actual research:
http://www.snowstudies.org/


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## Phil U. (Feb 7, 2009)

Paddled the lower numbers on the Ark at the end of the day yesterday and there was enough dust in the air to bother our eyes even while boating. The mountains were brown this morning but snow turned them white during the day.
P.


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## mr. compassionate (Jan 13, 2006)

The fox new 31 newscaster on the fan 104.3(don't know his name) claimed it was from the Icelandic volcano.


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## yakrafter (Aug 7, 2006)

And my oh so wise neighbor said it is from Mongolia.


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## david23 (Oct 24, 2003)

I researched this topic last summer as an intern at the Aspen Water Treatment Plant.

The problem (from a water treatment standpoint) is that the particles are so fine, fine enough to be blown hundreds or more miles) that even when dosed with coagulants, they (the dust particles) tend not to bind and instead go straight through the filter media and into the drinking water supply. Last spring the treatment plant had to completely change their treatment approach to compensate for this, using different and more expensive chemicals. While turbidity levels never breached regulatory levels, it is still cause for concern because 2009 was the first time this had occurred.

Here's a summary of dust events from 2008-2009:
Dec 13 2008: semi major dust storm 
Feb 27 2009: minor dust storm
Mar 6 2009: minor dust storm
Mar 9 2009: minor dust storm
Mar 27 2009: major dust storm
Mar 29 2009: major dust storm
Apr 3 2009: major dust storm
Apr 8 2009: minor dust storm
Apr 15 2009: minor dust storm
Apr 24 2009: minor dust storm
Apr 25 2009: minor dust storm

As the snow melts, the layers deposited throughout the season combine and accelerate the snowmelt process, leading to even more accelerated snowmelt. This means a higher volume but shorter peak.


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## whip (Oct 23, 2003)

20 yrs in Glenwood last 2 years are the 1st time I've seen it rain mud.
Anybody know if ranchers are still chaining BLM land for grazing in SE UT?


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## JDHOG72 (Jul 18, 2007)

A book called "The worst hard time" talks all about man's ability to turn good land to dust. It was called the dust bowl. The last two years are the most dust I have seen in 12 years living in the CO Mtns.


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## mjpowhound (May 5, 2006)

*From the NWS the other day:*

*What's up with that Brownish Red Mud?*

*What's Up With That Brownish Red Mud That Is All Over My Car?*
*The picture below indicates the areas of dust/sand across the Arizona desert and shows what the transporting wind flow was. The result of the dust/sand and the transporting wind plus the additional ingredient of moisture (wet or frozen) is explained below the picture.*







*No, it apparently was not from Iceland, China, or Mars. It was an invasion of dust and small sand particles courtesy of the Arizona desert. Strong southwesterly surface winds and winds in the upper atmosphere associated with the jet stream, had picked up the surface layer of dust and sand particles from the Arizona desert and transported these particulants northeastward into and across northwest New Mexico and the southern parts of Colorado. The dust and sand particles reduced the visibilities to under 4 miles in areas of Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado. The pollutants then continued their journey northeastward and moved over northeast Colorado which included Metro Denver and adjoining communities. A pilot report indicated that the dust/sand had reached altitudes of 37,000 feet. As this reddish brown phenomena moved northeastward, it came into contact with rainfall and snowfall which attached itself to the dust and sand and together they fell to the gound. Wherever the combination of liquid, dust and/or sand made contact, the outcome was a reddish brown mess that looked like liquid dust or in some places, liquid mud. This type situation only occurs if there is a strong southwest wind from the surface to the upper atmospheric wind levels and the desert surface is extremely dry. That combination must then combine with some form of liquid (rain and/or snow) which will then fall from the sky and create that reddish brown concoction that ruined the look of your newly washed vehicle or the clothes that you just hung out to dry.*


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