Potential Effects of Climate Change and Adaptive Strategies for Lake Simcoe and the Wetlands and Streams Within the Watershed

Potential Effects of Climate Change and Adaptive Strategies for Lake Simcoe and the Wetlands and Streams Within the Watershed PDF Author: Cindy Chu
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781443572187
Category : Aquatic ecology
Languages : en
Pages : 18

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Book Description
Changes in air temperatures, precipitation patterns, and extreme weather events associated with climate change have and will continue to influence aquatic ecosystems. Increased water temperatures, changes in the timing of the spring freshet, the duration of ice-cover, and the composition of wetlands have been already documented in several systems. Lake Simcoe and the wetlands and streams within the Lake Simcoe Watershed are also being affected by climate change. The objectives of this study were to (1) use ecological indicators to assess the potential effects of climate change and (2) apply those results to inform the development of a climate change adaptation strategy for aquatic ecosystems within the Lake Simcoe Watershed. For each ecosystem, physical habitat changes associated with climate change were paired with a biological indicator.--Document.

Potential Effects of Climate Change and Adaptive Strategies for Lake Simcoe and the Wetlands and Streams Within the Watershed

Potential Effects of Climate Change and Adaptive Strategies for Lake Simcoe and the Wetlands and Streams Within the Watershed PDF Author: Cindy Chu
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781443572187
Category : Aquatic ecology
Languages : en
Pages : 18

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Book Description
Changes in air temperatures, precipitation patterns, and extreme weather events associated with climate change have and will continue to influence aquatic ecosystems. Increased water temperatures, changes in the timing of the spring freshet, the duration of ice-cover, and the composition of wetlands have been already documented in several systems. Lake Simcoe and the wetlands and streams within the Lake Simcoe Watershed are also being affected by climate change. The objectives of this study were to (1) use ecological indicators to assess the potential effects of climate change and (2) apply those results to inform the development of a climate change adaptation strategy for aquatic ecosystems within the Lake Simcoe Watershed. For each ecosystem, physical habitat changes associated with climate change were paired with a biological indicator.--Document.

Responding to the Effects of Climate Change in the Lake Simcoe Watershed

Responding to the Effects of Climate Change in the Lake Simcoe Watershed PDF Author: Vidya Anderson
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781460635537
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 25

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Book Description
"As part of the government's overall strategy to protect and restore the ecological health of the Lake Simcoe Watershed, the Lake Simcoe Protection Act received Royal Assent in December 2008. The Act has provided the authority for the establishment of the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan, which includes provisions to manage for climate change. This plan contains a specific climate change policy to guide provincial government ministries, First Nations and Métis communities, the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA), municipalities, and interested academic institutions in developing a climate change adaptation strategy for the Lake Simcoe Watershed. In this report, the approach, methods, and results of a multi-partner initiative to assess the vulnerabilities of natural and man-made systems to climate change and list options for climate change adaptation for the Lake Simcoe Watershed are described"--Summary.

Water, Climate Change, and Forests

Water, Climate Change, and Forests PDF Author: Michael J. Furniss
Publisher: DIANE Publishing
ISBN: 1437939848
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 80

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Book Description
This is a print on demand edition of a hard to find publication. Water from forested watersheds provides irreplaceable habitat for aquatic and riparian species and supports our homes, farms, industries, and energy production. Yet population pressures, land uses, and rapid climate change combine to seriously threaten these waters and the resilience of watersheds in most places. Forest land managers are expected to anticipate and respond to these threats and steward forested watersheds to ensure the sustained protection and provision of water and the services it provides. Contents of this report: (1) Intro.; (2) Background: Forests and Water; Climate Change: Hydrologic Responses and Ecosystem Services; (3) Moving Forward: Think; Collaborate; Act; (4) Closing; (5) Examples of Watershed Stewardship. Illus.

Implications of Climate Change for Strategic Conservation and Restoration of Tidal Wetlands in the U.S. Portion of the Salish Sea

Implications of Climate Change for Strategic Conservation and Restoration of Tidal Wetlands in the U.S. Portion of the Salish Sea PDF Author: Brittany Robinson Jones
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Salt marshes
Languages : en
Pages : 148

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Book Description
Coastal ecosystems are potentially at risk of sea level rise and other accelerated changes in climate. The overall goal of this thesis was to explore the potential influences of spatially varied climate change impacts on tidal wetlands in the U.S. portion of the Salish Sea and discuss implications for strategic conservation and restoration of current and future wetland areas. Since sediment accretion is a vital mechanism for tidal wetland persistence under sea level rise, the overall objective of Chapter 1 was to determine the relationship between sediment accretion rate and surface elevation in a restored and a natural tidal wetland in the Stillaguamish River delta. In the restored zone, there was a negative linear relationship between sediment accretion rates and surface elevation but a quadratic relationship in the reference zone. Vegetation, including dominant vegetation species and vegetation height, also helped explain the pattern of sediment accretion rates. The objective of Chapter 2 was to conduct a spatial analysis of potential tidal wetland responses to future climate change in the U.S. portion of the Salish Sea in order to simulate the (1) overall change in wetland area, (2) potential for tidal wetlands to persist locally, and (3) opportunity for transgressive migration between initial conditions and 2025, 2050, 2075, and 2100 under a low (0.5 m between 2000 and 2100) and high (1.4 m between 2000 and 2100) sea level rise scenario. Total tidal wetland area was projected to decline under both sea level rise scenarios, but some wetland types (e.g., emergent marsh) were projected to expand. Projected local persistence was greater for tidal flat and emergent marsh compared to transitional scrub-shrub and tidal swamp. While the projected area for transgressive migration was small, this process may serve as a buffer for wetland loss by providing dry land for the establishment of new wetland areas. Identifying variability in the adaptive capacity and opportunity for transgressive migration of tidal wetlands to climate change impacts is an important tool for prioritizing sites in order to protect wetlands and enhance their persistence and health into the future along with the ecosystem services they provide. The objectives of Chapter 3 were to model the projected changes in tidal wetlands in the U.S. portion of the Salish Sea without levee protection and to apply the findings of Chapter 2 to a framework of strategic conservation and restoration of tidal wetlands. The projected change in total wetland area between initial conditions and 2100 switched from a decline with levee protection to an expansion without levee protection in the San Juan and Whidbey sub-basins and the Skagit and Stillaguamish River deltas under both sea level rise scenarios. The Skagit, Stillaguamish, and Snohomish river deltas were identified as high priority for conservation and restoration based on historical potential and degradation level under a climate change context, followed by the Nooksack and Samish. In order for conservation and restoration efforts of tidal wetlands to be successful and persist into the future, this study shows that climate change should be considered to identify current and future tidal wetland areas that are projected to exist under the influence of accelerated sea level rise. Identifying priority deltas for tidal wetland conservation and restoration under a climate change framework will be beneficial for the allocation of resources in the short- and long-term.

Climate Change Handbook for Regional Water Planning

Climate Change Handbook for Regional Water Planning PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 248

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Book Description
"This handbook considers both climate change adaptation (reduction of impacts) and mitigation [greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction]. Quantitative tools and techniques for addressing both are introduced and discussed in order to prepare comprehensive IRWMPs [integrated regional water management plans]. A guide to assess the vulnerability of a watershed or region to climate change impacts is presented in this handbook, and guidelines to prioritize vulnerabilities are introduced. This handbook relies on approaches that have been developed and applied to regional watershed planning processes. This handbook also presents case studies that provide illustrative examples in which the latest science and methods on climate change, including uncertainty and adaptive management approaches, have been applied outside academia. While the available suite of climate change tools and analytical techniques for incorporating climate change is continually advancing and improving, the underlying planning processes outlined in this handbook should continue to provide a solid basis for comprehensive watershed planning. Improved decisions about water resources management systems, whether adapting them to future climate change or mitigating climate change through reductions in GHG emissions, should result from application of the framework in this handbook. This handbook presents the range of decisions that need to be made and the factors that go into making those decisions at a local or regional level." -- Foreword.

Distinctive Impacts of Extreme Warm Season Precipitation and Climate Change on the Vulnerable Water Resources of the Southwestern United States

Distinctive Impacts of Extreme Warm Season Precipitation and Climate Change on the Vulnerable Water Resources of the Southwestern United States PDF Author: Michael D. Sierks
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This dissertation explores the influence of extreme precipitation and the potential impacts of climate change on the vulnerable water resources of the southwestern United States. Specifically, it focuses on 1) the characteristics, origins, and impacts of historical extreme warm-season precipitation in the Lake Mead watershed, 2) improving existing bias correction techniques for projected future streamflows, and 3) investigating the vulnerability of California's largest reservoir, Lake Shasta, to climate change under existing and adaptive operating protocols. Although the North American Monsoon (NAM) is the main driver of summertime climate variability in the American southwest, considerable knowledge gaps exist regarding its impact at the northern extent of the core region (northwestern Mexico, southern Arizona, and New Mexico). The first part of this dissertation catalogues historical extreme precipitation events in the Lake Mead watershed (located at the NAM's northern boundary) and identifies unique synoptic drivers of extreme precipitation between the canonical NAM region and watersheds to the north. From here, the dissertation shifts its focus from the historical period to future climate projections. Motivated by a desire to connect bias correction techniques to the underlying dynamics within earth systems models, a novel statistical method is developed for projected streamflow wherein data are windowed based on hydrograph-relative time, rather than Julian day. This method yields improved preservation of original climate model data for both extreme and non-extreme events. Utilizing these bias corrected streamflow projections, and a simplified model of operations at California's largest reservoir, Lake Shasta, developed by the author, coming threats to water supply and flood risk under existing operations and several forms of adaptive responses to climate change are analyzed. Compared to the historical period, we simulate 27% declines in carryover storage (storage on September 30th) at the end of the 21st century under a severe warming scenario if operations are left unchanged. Despite many simulated interventions favoring water supply over flood risk, historical levels of carryover storage were irretrievable at the end of the century under the warmer of the two warming scenarios examined in this study.

Impacts of Land Cover and Climate Change on Water Resources in Suasco River Watershed

Impacts of Land Cover and Climate Change on Water Resources in Suasco River Watershed PDF Author: Ammara Talib
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
ABSTRACT IMPACTS OF LAND COVER AND CLIMATE CHANGE ON WATER RESOURCES IN SUASCO RIVER WATERSHED September 2015 AMMARA TALIB, BS., PUNJAB UNIVERSITY LAHORE MS., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST Directed by: Professor Tim Randhir Hydrological balance and biogeochemical processes in watershed are significantly influenced by changes in land use land cover (LULC) and climate change. Those changes can influence interception, evapotranspiration (ET), infiltration, soil moisture, water balance and biogeochemical cycling of carbon, nitrogen and other elements at regional to global scales. The impacts of these hydrological disturbances are generally reflected in form of increasing runoff rate and volume, more intense and frequent floods, decreasing groundwater recharge and base flow, elevated levels of sediments and increase in concentration of nutrients in both streams and shallow groundwater. Water quality of Sudbury, Assabet and Concord (SuAsCo) watershed in Massachusetts is also compromised because of influx of runoff, sediments and nutrients. There is a crucial need to evaluate the synergistic effects of LULC change and climate change on the water quality and water quantity in a watershed system. A watershed simulation model is used to simulate hydrologic processes and water quality changes in sediment loads, total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP). The model is calibrated and validated with field-measured data. Climatic scenarios are represented by downscaled regional projections from Global Climate Model (GCM) models and regional built out scenarios of LULC are used to assess the impacts of projected LULC and climate change on water quality and water quantity. Simultaneous changes in LULC and climate significantly affect the water resources in the SuAsCo River watershed. Change in climate increased ET (4.7 %) because of high temperature, but independent change in land cover reduced ET (6.5%) because of less available vegetation. Combined change in land cover and climate reduced ET (2.1%) overall, which indicates that land cover change has significant impact on ET. Change in climate increased total run off (6%) and this increase is more significant as compared to 2.7 % increase in total runoff caused by land cover change. Change in land cover increased surface runoff more significantly (69.2%) than 7.9 % increase caused by climate change. Combined change in land cover and climate further increased the average storm peak volume (12.8 percent) because of high precipitation and impervious area in future. There is a potential for reducing runoff, sediments and nutrients loads by using conservation policies and adaptation strategies. This research provides valuable information about the dynamics of watershed system, as well as the complex processes that impair water resources.

Scenarios and Implications of Land Use and Climate Change on Water Quality in Mesoscale Agricultural Watersheds

Scenarios and Implications of Land Use and Climate Change on Water Quality in Mesoscale Agricultural Watersheds PDF Author: Bano B Mehdi
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
"A comparative study in two mesoscale, agricultural watersheds located in mid-latitude, developed regions (Altmühl River, Germany and in Pike River, Canada) investigated potential future land use change and climate change impacts on surface water quality. The two watersheds provided a unique opportunity to compare potential impacts of change in similar physical and climatological regions, yet under different political settings related to agricultural policies as well as water quality management and protection. The objectives of the research were to develop agricultural land use scenarios to apply to a hydrological model simultaneously with climate change simulations. This modelling framework allowed quantifying these combined impacts on streamflow, sediment loads, nitrate-nitrogen loads and concentrations, as well as total phosphorus loads and concentrations to the 2050 time horizon. The impacts of climate change were evaluated alone and then with land use change. Overall, the quality of surface water simulated in both watersheds will be deteriorated according to environmental standards set by the ministries by 2050 due to higher mean annual nutrient loads transported into the rivers. Climate change impacts were greater than land use change impacts; however land use change can have an important influence on water quality, depending on the magnitude of crop changes taking place. Field-level adaptation strategies in the Pike River were simulated to determine the extent of reducing the combined impacts of land use and climate change. The strategies were able to mitigate the combined impacts, and also to improve the quality of surface water compared to the in-stream nutrient concentrations in the reference simulation.In both watersheds, it was determined that the combined interaction between climate change and land use change in the hydrological model are non-linear. Examining the combined impacts are necessary to determine potential alterations in water quality in a basin since the direction and the magnitude are not predictable from the individual changes alone." --

Estimating the Effects of Global Climate Change on Streamflow and Wetlands in the Watershed of the Pere Marquette River, Michigan

Estimating the Effects of Global Climate Change on Streamflow and Wetlands in the Watershed of the Pere Marquette River, Michigan PDF Author: Avram G. B. Primack
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 358

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Book Description


Climate Change and the Lake Simcoe Watershed

Climate Change and the Lake Simcoe Watershed PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781460601877
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description