The Climate Change in Colorado
Published on by Water Network Research, Official research team of The Water Network in Academic
New Report Highlights How Climate Change May Affect Water In Colorado
This report is a synthesis of climate science relevantfor management and planning for Colorado's waterresources. It focuses on observed climate trends,climate modeling, and projections of temperature,precipitation, snowpack, and streamflow.
Climateprojections are reported for the mid-21st centurybecause this time frame is the focus of adaptationstrategies being developed by the State of Coloradoand other water entities.
OverviewIn the past 30 years, Colorado's climate has becomesubstantially warmer. The recent warming trend in
Colorado is in step with regional and global warmingthat has been linked to increasing atmosphericconcentrations of greenhouse gases.
Annualprecipitation, which has high natural variability, hasnot seen a statewide trend over that period.
However,some drought indicators have worsened due to thewarmer temperatures.
As greenhouse gases and other human effects on theclimate continue to increase, Colorado is expected towarm even more by the mid-21st century, pushingtemperatures outside of the range of the past century.
The outlook for future precipitation in Colorado is lessclear; overall increases or decreases are possible.
Therisk of decreasing precipitation appears to be higherfor the southern parts of the state.
The future warming is projected to generally reduceColorado's spring snowpack, cause earlier snowmeltand runoff, and increase the water use by crops,landscaping, and natural vegetation.
While futureincreases in annual natural streamflow are possible,the body of published research indicates a greater riskof decreasing streamflow, particularly in the southernhalf of the state.
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