The Piceance Yellow Watershed is a relatively small watershed with a land area of approximately 1,162 square miles. It is located in northwestern Colorado and is part of the larger Colorado River Basin. The hydrology of the watershed is primarily characterized by its snowpack, which accumulates in the winter and melts in the spring, providing surface water for streams and reservoirs. The snowpack is influenced by the Pacific Ocean's El Niño and La Niña patterns, which can result in significantly different snowpack levels from year to year. The watershed contains several reservoirs that store water for irrigation and municipal use, and the water quality of these reservoirs is monitored for constituents such as total nitrogen and phosphorus. Climate trends in the Piceance Yellow Watershed show an increasing trend in temperature over the past several decades, which could have implications for the snowpack and overall hydrology of the watershed.