[nws-changes] 20110427: Fire wx boundaries

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NOUS41 KWBC DDHHMM

PNSWSH

Service Change Notice 11-19

National Weather Service Headquarters Washington DC

1242 PM EDT Wed Apr 27 2011

TO:Subscribers:

-Family of Services

-NOAA Weather Wire Service

-Emergency Managers Weather Information Network

-NOAAPORT

Other NWS partners and NWS employees

FROM:Eli Jacks

Chief, Fire and Public Weather Services Branch

SUBJECT:Changes to the Boundaries of Fire Weather Forecast

Zone 201, the Craig Forecast Area, Including Moffat,

Routt and Rio Blanco Counties, CO; and Zone 205, the

Montrose Forecast Area, Including Delta, Gunnison ,

Montrose, San Miguel, Ouray, and Northern Hinsdale

Counties, CO, Effective June 7, 2011

Effective Tuesday, June 7, 2011, at 1200 Coordinated Universal

Time (UTC), the NWS Weather Forecast Office (WFO) in Grand

Junction (GJT), CO, will split the Craig Forecast Area (COZ201)

intothree new fire weather forecast zones, and the Montrose

Forecast Area (COZ205) into four new fire weather forecast zones.

This change will improve fire weather forecast services for WFO

GJT’s fire weather partners and users by better associating zone

areaswith weather regimes and terrain.

The split of COZ201, Craig Forecast Area, will create new fire

weatherzones for the mountainous terrain of the Park and Gore

Mountain Ranges and the Flat Top Wilderness (new COZ201 - Routt); the lower elevation terrain in northern Moffat County (COZ200 Little Snake) and the plateau area of Rio Blanco and Garfield counties (COZ202 White River).

The split of COZ205, Montrose Forecast Area, will create new fire weather forecast zones for the mountainous terrain of the

northwestSan Juan mountains and Uncompahgre Plateau (COZ291, Northern San Juan), the lower valleys of Delta and eastern

Montrose counties (COZ292, North Fork), the Paradox Valley area

ofwestern Montrose and San Miguel counties (COZ290, Paradox

Valley) and the mountainous terrain of the West Elk Mountains

(COZ293, Gunnison Basin).

Once this change has been implemented, the fire weather forecast

zonenumbers, names and geographical descriptors in Table 1 will

beused in all fire weather forecast products issued by WFO GJT.

This change does not affect WFO GJT public weather forecast zones or products.

Table 1:New and Old WFO GJT Fire Weather Forecast Zones

New FireNew FireOld FireOld Fire

Weather ZoneWeather ZoneWeather ZoneWeather Zone

NumberNameNumberName

----------------------------------------------------

COZ200Little SnakeCOZ201Craig Forecast

Area

COZ201RouttCOZ201Craig Forecast

Area

COZ202White River COZ201Craig Forecast

Area

COZ290Paradox Valley COZ205Montrose

Forecast Area

COZ291Northern SanCOZ205Montrose

JuanForecast Area

COZ292North Fork COZ205Montrose

Forecast Area

COZ293Gunnison Basin COZ205Montrose

Forecast Area

Table 2:New Zone Descriptors

New Zone COZ200 - Little Snake

COZ200 Physical Description:This zone consists of that portion

ofMoffat County north of state highway 40, except for the higher elevations in the extreme northeast part of the county, in northwest Colorado.

New Zone COZ201 - Routt

COZ201 Physical Description:This zone is defined as Routt

County, the Elkhead Mountains in extreme northeast Moffat County, and higher elevations in extreme eastern Rio Blanco County, east of highway 13, in northwest Colorado.

New Zone COZ202 - White River

COZ202 Physical Description:This zone is defined as that part

ofMoffat County south of highway 40, and the plateau areas of

Rio Blanco County , west of highway 13, in northwest Colorado .

New Zone COZ290 - Paradox Valley

COZ290 Physical Description:This zone consists of the Paradox

Valley area of western Montrose and San Miguel Counties .

New Zone COZ291 - Northern San Juan

COZ291 Physical Description:This zone is defined as the

northernportion of the San Juan Mountains within Ouray and

easternSan Miguel Counties , and the Uncompahgre Plateau within

northwestOuray and western Montrose Counties .

New Zone COZ292 - North Fork

COZ292 Physical Description:This zone is defined as Uncompahgre and North Folk of the Gunnison River basins in Delta, eastern Montrose, and extreme western Gunnison Counties, in western

Colorado .

New Zone COZ293 - Gunnison Basin

COZ293 Physical Description:This zone is defined as the

Gunnison Basin within Delta and Gunnison Counties in western

Colorado

Graphical depictions of the old and new fire weather forecast

zonesare online at:

http://www.weather.gov/os/notification/images/gjt2.png

http://www.weather.gov/os/notification/images/gjt1.png

Table 3: NWS fire weather watch, warning and forecast products

affectedby these changes

PRODUCTWMO HEADINGAWIPS ID

------------------------------------------

Fire Weather WatchWWUS85 KGJTRFWGJT

Red Flag Warning WWUS85 KGJTRFWGJT

Fire Weather PlanningFNUS55 KGJTFWFGJT

Forecast

National Fire DangerFNUS85 KGJTFWMGJT

Rating System Forecast

NWS partners and users will need to make necessary changes to

theircommunication systems to accommodate these fire weather

forecastzone changes.

A shapefile of the new fire weather forecast zones for WFO GJT

isavailable for download at:

www.nws.noaa.gov/geodata/catalog/wsom/html/firezone.htm <http://www.nws.noaa.gov/geodata/catalog/wsom/html/firezone.htm>

For more information, please contact:

James Pringle

Warning Coordination Meteorologist

National Weather Service

Grand Junction, CO 81506-6844

970-243-7007

james.pringle@xxxxxxxx <mailto:james.pringle@xxxxxxxx>

National Service Change Notices are online at:

http://www.weather.gov/os/notif.htm

$$

NNNN

--
Linda Miller - lmiller@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Community Services, Unidata
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
P.O. Box 3000
Boulder, CO 80307-3000
303-497-8646 fax: 303-497-8690



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