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Department of Ecology News Release - August 2, 2007
07-214
OLYMPIA - The Department of Ecology (Ecology) has contracted with the University of Washington's Climate Impacts Group (CIG) to project how climate change will affect stream flows throughout the Columbia River Basin.
The study is broad both in scope and in funding partners Oregon, Idaho, British Columbia, the Bonneville Power Administration and the Northwest Power and Conservation Council are helping to pay for this study.
"We can no longer make water policy decisions based on the historic record alone," said Ecology Director Jay Manning. "This study is a critical step that will help us to prepare and adapt to changes in the hydrologic cycle brought on by global warming."
Competition for water during the summer is already the norm throughout the Columbia River Basin. Climate change is expected to increase this competition. Pacific Northwest mountains have historically provided vast amounts of free water storage by holding the winter's snowpack before releasing it throughout the spring and summer. Increasing temperatures only a few degrees will cause spring runoff to occur earlier in the year. Because more precipitation will fall as rain rather than snow at the lower mountain elevations, there will be less snowmelt to run off. The likely result: lower and warmer streamflows in the summer when fish, farmers and other users need it most.
The study is limited to the Columbia River Basin. Ecology's portion of the funding comes from 2006's HB 2860, which directed Ecology to "aggressively pursue development of water supplies to benefit both instream and out-of-stream uses" in the Columbia River Basin. "While we had some good general information about how climate change would affect the basin's water resources, we need to dive into the details more, especially in the tributaries." Ken Slattery, who manages Ecology's Water Resources Program, said.
The contract with CIG is different from previous climate change research. As with previous studies, global circulation model simulations will serve as the driving data for the hydrologic models. However, the resolution detail of the hydrologic models will be four times that of previous studies so as to better ascertain effects in smaller river basins.
Key pilot watersheds will be analyzed with an even more sophisticated hydrologic modeling procedure that will further enhance the resolution and provide simulations of additional variables, including water temperature. Both hydrology models will project how basin stream flows will change through the rest of this century due to climate change.
The two modeling approaches will be compared to see if the benefits of the fine scale modeling are worth the relatively high implementation costs. The end products won't be typical reports, but will be web-based interactive tools that enable users to run different scenarios and tailor the results to suit their individual needs.
Study results will also provide information for the broader comprehensive state climate change assessment as directed by Governor Gregoire's Executive Order 07-02, which specifically requires an assessment of what further steps the state of Washington should take to be prepared for the impact of global warming on water supply and management. Water plays a key role in a number of issues, including human health, stormwater management, coastal impacts, and salmon recovery.
"With so many different stakeholders in the basin representing often competing constituencies and interests, managing water resources is all about finding common ground. This study will allow us all to review the same data," said Dr. Kurt Unger, the Ecology hydrologist who organized the contract.
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Media contacts:
Washington State Department of Ecology: Kurt Unger Email: kung461@ecy.wa.gov, Phone (360) 407-7262
BC Ministry of Environment: Ben Kangasniemi Email: Ben.Kangasniemi@gov.bc.ca, Phone: (250) 387-9493
Bonneville Power Administration: Nancy Stephan Email: nlstephan@bpa.gov, Phone: (503) 230-5296
Climate Impacts Group: Alan Hamlet Email: hamleaf@u.washinmgton.edu, Phone: (206) 616-9361
Northwest Power and Conservation Council: John Fazio Email: jfazio@nwcouncil.org, Phone: (503) 222-5161
Oregon Water Resources: Barry Norris Email: Barry.F.Norris@wrd.state.or.us, Phone: (503) 986-0828
University of Idaho: John Tracy Email: tracy@uidaho.edu, Phone: (208) 332-4422
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
