The Roaring Fork Watershed, located in the Rocky Mountains 150 miles west of Denver, Colorado, has seen rapid development and population growth in recent years.
The USGS, in cooperation with Pitkin County, Colorado Water Conservation District, Ruedi Water and Power Authority, and other local entities, conducted a comprehensive surface- and ground-water resource assessment in the Roaring Fork River watershed. The study provided an understanding of the natural and human factors that affect the quantity and quality of the water resources including stream biota.
Historical data for the Roaring Fork Watershed have been compiled by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with several agencies: Colorado River Water Conservation Board, Pitkin County, and the Town of Basalt. From 1949 to 2006, 6 agencies have collected water-quality data and biological data at a total of 308 sites within the watershed. These data were compiled into a single relational data base. Types of water data collected include major ions, nutrients, trace metals, pesticides, and volatile organics. Types of biological data collected include fish, algae, and macroinvertebrate information.
Objectives:
- Compile and characterize existing water-resources and stream-biota data for the Roaring Fork River watershed.
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Develop a data base containing information on water-quantity, water-quality, Geographic Information System (GIS) features/coverages, and stream-biota.
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Identify, describe, and explain, where possible, the major natural and human factors that affect observed water-quantity and quality conditions.
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Sources/Usage: Public Domain.Ranch near Mt. Sopris, ColoradoCredit: Jeffrey B. Foster, USGS Continued from Phase 1--Identify, describe, and explain, where possible, the major natural and human factors that affect observed water-quantity and quality conditions.
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Conduct a retrospective analysis of historic data and assess the broad-scale geographic and seasonal distribution of current water-quantity and quality and stream-biota conditions of the Roaring Fork River watershed.
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Based on the retrospective analysis results and stakeholder input, design a water-quality and stream-biology sampling scheme to provide information to address water-quality and water-resource management concerns.
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Implement the monitoring program to collect data that will allow current water-quality and quantity and stream-biota conditions in the Roaring Fork River watershed to be described.
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Interpret results from the monitoring program and modify the design as needed to address future water-quality and water-resource management concerns.
Below are other science projects associated with the Colorado Water-Quality Data Repository.
Upper Yampa Watershed Water-Quality Data
Eagle River Water-Quality Data
Piceance Basin Water-Quality Data
Upper Gunnison River Water-Quality Data
Southwest Study Area Water-Quality Data
Roaring Fork Watershed Water-Quality Data
Arkansas River Water-Quality Data
Blue River Water-Quality Data
- Overview
The Roaring Fork Watershed, located in the Rocky Mountains 150 miles west of Denver, Colorado, has seen rapid development and population growth in recent years.
The USGS, in cooperation with Pitkin County, Colorado Water Conservation District, Ruedi Water and Power Authority, and other local entities, conducted a comprehensive surface- and ground-water resource assessment in the Roaring Fork River watershed. The study provided an understanding of the natural and human factors that affect the quantity and quality of the water resources including stream biota.
Historical data for the Roaring Fork Watershed have been compiled by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with several agencies: Colorado River Water Conservation Board, Pitkin County, and the Town of Basalt. From 1949 to 2006, 6 agencies have collected water-quality data and biological data at a total of 308 sites within the watershed. These data were compiled into a single relational data base. Types of water data collected include major ions, nutrients, trace metals, pesticides, and volatile organics. Types of biological data collected include fish, algae, and macroinvertebrate information.
Sources/Usage: Public Domain.Fryingpan River below Ruedi Dam, ColoradoCredit: Jeffrey B. Foster, USGS Objectives:
- Compile and characterize existing water-resources and stream-biota data for the Roaring Fork River watershed.
-
Develop a data base containing information on water-quantity, water-quality, Geographic Information System (GIS) features/coverages, and stream-biota.
-
Identify, describe, and explain, where possible, the major natural and human factors that affect observed water-quantity and quality conditions.
-
Sources/Usage: Public Domain.
Ranch near Mt. Sopris, ColoradoCredit: Jeffrey B. Foster, USGS Continued from Phase 1--Identify, describe, and explain, where possible, the major natural and human factors that affect observed water-quantity and quality conditions.
-
Conduct a retrospective analysis of historic data and assess the broad-scale geographic and seasonal distribution of current water-quantity and quality and stream-biota conditions of the Roaring Fork River watershed.
-
Based on the retrospective analysis results and stakeholder input, design a water-quality and stream-biology sampling scheme to provide information to address water-quality and water-resource management concerns.
-
Implement the monitoring program to collect data that will allow current water-quality and quantity and stream-biota conditions in the Roaring Fork River watershed to be described.
-
Interpret results from the monitoring program and modify the design as needed to address future water-quality and water-resource management concerns.
- Science
Below are other science projects associated with the Colorado Water-Quality Data Repository.
Upper Yampa Watershed Water-Quality Data
The Upper Yampa River Watershed (UYRW) drains approximately 1,798 square miles west of the Continental Divide in northwestern Colorado. The Upper Yampa River Watershed includes the Yampa River Basin upstream from Elkhead Creek and the Elkhead Creek Basin and primarily is in Routt County. The city of Steamboat Springs and the towns of Hayden, Oak Creek, and Yampa are in the watershed. The Yampa...Eagle River Water-Quality Data
The Eagle River drains approximately 970 square miles (sq mi) west of the Continental Divide in central Colorado before flowing into the Colorado River. The Eagle River watershed (ERW) is located primarily within Eagle County and includes the towns of Vail, Minturn, Avon, Edwards, Eagle, and Gypsum. The eastern boundary of the Eagle River watershed is drained by Gore Creek, located at Vail Pass...Piceance Basin Water-Quality Data
As large-scale energy development continues in the Piceance Basin, there is potential for changes in surface-water and groundwater resources. In the southern Piceance Basin, a water task force consisting of numerous local governments, municipalities, and energy companies collectively identified the need for a common data repository. In the northern Piceance Basin, similar efforts were underway in...Upper Gunnison River Water-Quality Data
The Upper Gunnison River Watershed, located in the Rocky Mountains 150 miles southwest of Denver, Colorado, drains approximately 3,965 square miles. Forest and rangeland comprise 89 percent of land within the watershed, but the traditional western ranching economy is increasingly supplemented through a tourism economy centered around Crested Butte Mountain Resort and the Curecanti National...Southwest Study Area Water-Quality Data
In southwest Colorado, drought, wildfires, mining activities, agriculture, and population growth have altered the landscape from its natural condition. These changes have potentially degraded the water-quality of streams, rivers, reservoirs, and groundwater by introducing or increasing levels of metals, nutrients, synthetic organic chemicals, and sediment. Recognizing the need to understand how...Roaring Fork Watershed Water-Quality Data
The Roaring Fork Watershed, located in the Rocky Mountains 150 miles west of Denver, Colorado, has seen rapid development and population growth in recent years. The USGS, in cooperation with Pitkin County, Colorado Water Conservation District, Ruedi Water and Power Authority, and other local entities, conducted a comprehensive surface- and ground-water resource assessment in the Roaring Fork River...Arkansas River Water-Quality Data
The Arkansas River Basin drains an area of 24,904 square miles of southeastern Colorado. Like other basins on the Front Range, the Arkansas Basin has experienced growth and is expected to have significant increases in growth in the future. Demands on the limited water resources also will increase as changes in water storage, water releases, and/or transfer of waters within or outside of the basin...Blue River Water-Quality Data
The Blue River drains approximately 680 square miles west of the Continental Divide in central Colorado before flowing northward into the Colorado River near Kremmling, Colorado. The Blue River watershed (BRW) is almost entirely located in Summit County and includes the towns of Breckenridge, Dillon, Frisco, Montezuma, and Silverthorne. Dillon Reservoir and Green Mountain Reservoir are major water... - Publications
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