Temporal and Seasonal Trends in Streamflow in the Uinta Mountains, Northeastern Utah, and Relation to Climatic Fluctuations

Over the past half century there has been a trend in numerous regions of the western United States toward a declining portion of the total annual streamflow occurring during the snowmelt season (April through July). Changes in the seasonality of discharge primarily reflect a shift in the seasonal distribution of precipitation. Years with an unusually large fraction of annual streamflow occurring during the spring snowmelt coincide with winters with unusually high precipitation. Years with an unusually small fraction of annual streamflow occurring during the spring snowmelt coincide with unusually low precipitation during the winter and unusually warm temperatures during the spring. The magnitude of the peak annual flood is sensitive to amount of winter precipitation and variations in spring and early summer temperatures. Large peak annual floods occur in years with high precipitation and low temperatures in the late winter and spring, which preserve the maximum snowpack. Small peak annual floods occur in years with low precipitation throughout the winter and high temperatures in the spring. During the period of gage record, peak annual flood magnitudes exhibit temporal variability. Extreme events in the peak annual flood record, particularly years of large snowmelt floods, have increased in frequency since 1960. Large floods during this time period occur in years with atypically cool temperatures in April and May, which would likely preserve the winter snowpack through the spring.