What Colorado’s mountain lakes can tell scientists about climate change

For over 40 years, the U.S. Forest Service has been collecting data from 35 high-altitude lakes to drive an understanding of environmental changes. The Steamboat Pilot and Aspen Times recently highlighted an ongoing synthesis led by Dr. MJ Farruggia that she presented at the U.S. Forest Service Rocky Mountain Reseach Station in Fort Collins, CO.

Summit Lake, located in the Mount Blue Sky Wilderness in the Arapahoe National Forest, is among the lakes that have been sampled for over 40 years as part of a U.S. Forest Service program. High-altitude lakes are sensitive, making them a perfect testing ground for evaluating the impacts of climate change and pollutants on ecosystems.

Shelby Valicenti/Summit Daily News archive