The western slope of Colorado was my birthplace. A small ranching community sitting in the valley on the north slopes of the Great San Juan Mountains. My youngest daughter was born in the valley on the southern slopes of these same beautiful mountains when I was stationed in this area with the U.S. Navy.
Prior to the admittance of Alaska and Hawaii as part of the United States, Arizona and New Mexico achieved statehood status in 1912. At this time, I would request that a boycott or embargo be placed on the states of New Mexico and Arizona for deliberately enhancing the melt down and destruction of the world class skiing areas of Colorful Colorado.
In an article that was released today by Livescience.com stating that the "drought stricken southwest" is speeding the melt of snow in the Colorado mountains. As quoted, "In 2006, snows in areas of Colorado's San Juan Mountains above and below the tree line (above which trees can no longer grow)(their description of "treeline" not mine) unexpectedly melted a month earlier than usual. The article goes on to explain, "The cause for this premature melt was dust, most likely originally from the parched deserts in Arizona and New Mexico, hundreds of miles away". Now, I am no scientist but are not "deserts" suppose to be parched? As for these states being hundreds of miles from Colorado, if my memory serves me right the southern slopes of the San Juan Mountains are less than 40 miles from the New Mexico border. The last time I was in southern Colorado, four states including Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico and Utah join together at the historic monument of the "Four Corners" just 4o miles from Lizard Head Pass which crosses the San Juan Mountains. If the dust of Arizona and New Mexico is eliminating the snow cover, I would guess the good folks that live in Flagstaff, Arizona or on the rim of the Grand Canyon will be happy to know that their snowfall should also be minimal in the future, I wish it would have happen when I got snowbound in Flagstaff after the Interstate Highway system had been shut down. What is the prognosis, again according to this article, "The expected exacerbation of western droughts brought about by global warming will likely make the situation snowball." How can it "snowball" if all the snow melts early? The forecast of Global Warming in the Southwest: Expect 90 years of Drought Air Pollution. I would suggest that the good states of Arizona and New Mexico be mandated to build fences on their southern borders to stop the hoards crossing illegally and at the same time build large fans on the Colorado border to blow their dust back across the state line where it originated. Save the snows of Colorful Colorado.