Spatial and temporal variations of bulk snow properties in an alpine/subalpine watershed, Rocky Mountain National Park

Deposition of air pollutants to snowpacks is a concern to the health of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems in Rocky Mountain National Park due to the possible acidic pulses of solutes during spring snowmelt. This studyestablished spatial and temporal patterns and variations in snow chemical concentrations related to snow distribution and spring melt patterns in the high elevation alpine/subalpine Loch Vale watershed (LVWS), and sought to determine if the snow chemistry reflects the observed differences in stream chemistry between Icy Brook and Andrews Creek.A snow survey conducted in 1996 sampled thirteen sites selected to represent the variability in slope, aspect, and elevation in the LVWS. Bulk snow chemistry samples and snow depth and snow water equivalence (SWE) measurements were taken during four sampling periods from April through June. The elution of ions from the snowpack did not follow the same pattern throughout the watershed. Snow depth, aspect, and location within the watershed accounts for some of the observed differences in stream chemistry .