Climate Change Report Bolsters Need for Water Management Planning

You may have heard or read about a report – released last week by the Department of Interior – that warns of diminishing water supplies in the western and southwestern U.S.

Billed as the first comprehensive and coordinated assessment of climate change and its effect on eight major river basins in the U.S., the report projects an 8 percent to 20 percent decrease in the annual flows of the Colorado, Rio Grande and San Joaquin river basins.

Although the report confirmed what most climate change experts already knew, it provides a valuable starting point for the development of sustainable water resource management in the U.S.

The effect on hydropower generation could be significant. The report underscores the importance of developing water resource management techniques designed to mitigate the effects of climate change on hydropower production.

“Small changes in water supplies or the timing of precipitation can have a big impact on all of us,” said Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. “This report provides the foundation for understanding the long-term impacts of climate change on western water supplies and will help us identify and implement appropriate mitigation and adaptation strategies for sustainable water resource management.” 

Hydropower producers in the west rely heavily on runoff from melting snowpack to meet demand throughout the year. Climate change, however, is expected to reduce snowpack as experts forecast a transition from a snowfall hydrology to a rainfall hydrology.

As hydropower producers lose the ability to store energy as snow, their ability to store the added rainfall in reservoirs is limited. At some point, the added rainfall must be released as the reservoirs fill.

One thing is evident:  Without a strong water management plan designed to maximize power generation when it’s needed, it will become increasingly difficult for power providers in the west to meet demand.   

Water resource management will be a major topic of discussion during HydroVision International 2011, where experts in water management, planning and use will gather for seven panel discussions on a wide range of water resource issues.  

Lowell Douglas Stott, a professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Southern California and a renowned expert in the causes and effects of climate change, will be one of the featured speakers in a highly anticipated session entitled Climate Change and the Shifting Baseline.

"Climate change has been a popular topic within the water resources track of HydroVision for a number of years,” said Track Facilitator Patti Kroen. “ We are pleased to again include a discussion of the relationship of climate change to hydropower resources at Hydrovision 2011 and are thrilled that Dr. Stott will share his important work to inform our understanding of climate variability in the paleo-historic record."

For more information about HydroVision International 2011, scheduled July 19-22 in Sacramento, Calif., go to www.hydroevent.com.

Russell Ray is senior editor of Hydro Review magazine and chairman of HydroVision International 2011. Russell has 11 years experience as an energy journalist, covering the oil and gas industry in Oklahoma and the growth of solar and nuclear power in Florida. He served eight years as the energy reporter for the Tulsa World. He held the same position at the Tampa Tribune for two and a half years before joining Hydro Review in 2009.