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Posted inLocal Public Data
Data dashboard: Spring runoff boosts streamflows
• The Fork ran at 78.9% of average on April 30 below Maroon Creek and at 102.2% of average at Emma.
• Lake Powell’s elevation reaches the target elevation of 3,525 feet on April 30.
• Air quality in Aspen has improved since last week.
Posted inLocal Public Data
New short-term-rental rules limit supply, restrict future growth
Since new permits became available in September and October, Aspen has issued 790 as of April 3 and 111 licenses were issued in unincorporated Pitkin County as of April 20, for a total of 901 licensed STRs between the jurisdictions. That appears to be well below the total number of properties involved in short-term vacation renting prior to the new permit regulations, when neither jurisdiction had strict limits on STR proliferation.
Posted inWater
Community summit kicks off talks on how best to protect Crystal River
Although there may not be imminent, specific threats of dams or diversions on the Crystal, Wild & Scenic proponents say that doesn’t mean there won’t be threats at some point.
Posted inLocal Public Data
Data dashboard: Lake Powell rises above target elevation
• Lake Powell’s elevation reached 3,525.3 feet on April 23. That’s the first time since December that the reservoir’s water levels are above target elevation.
• The Fork at Stillwater ran at 40.1 cfs or 65.7% of average on April 23. That’s down from 117.4% of average last week.
• The air quality in Aspen was “moderate” last week. The AQI index reached up to 84 for ozone on April 23.
Posted inLocal Public Data
Real-time streamflow
Aspen Journalism is compiling real-time streamflow information. Users can hover on each graph to get the most current streamflow information for the selected station.
Posted inWater
Drought task force to consider conservation programs
Demand management has many skeptics, especially in western Colorado where some worry that temporarily compensating irrigators to use less could be a slippery slope toward “buy and dry,” stripping communities of their water.
Posted inLocal Public Data
Data dashboard: Streamflows spike as spring runoff begins
• Snowpack at Indy Pass went from 17.6 inches of snow-water equivalent on April 9 to 16.9 inches on April 16.
• The Fork at Emma ran at 412 cfs, or 101.7% of average, on April 16. That’s up from 244 cfs last week.
• Aspen recorded “moderate” air quality last week except for two days.
Posted inWater
Record March snow fueling above-average spring runoff forecasts
With warmer temperatures this week, it’s likely that much of the Western Slope has already turned the corner, hitting peak snowpack and beginning to melt out.
Posted inLocal Public Data
Data Dashboard: Snowpack at lower elevation sites just shy of records
• Snowpack at McClure Pass recorded a SWE of 29.2 inches on April 9, or 196% of median. It’s the second highest snowpack recorded at this site for that day between 1991 and 2020.
• Lake Powell’s water levels dropped to 3,520.4 feet or 4.6 feet below target elevation.
• Aspen recorded two days with “moderate” air quality last week.