Warming Temps Means Less Summer Rain For Columbia Basin

With average temperatures climbing, its expected winter precipitation will increase across the Columbia Basin while summer precipitation will drop.  The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation on Tuesday released the Columbia Basin study, which projected future impacts on water resources in the states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada and Montana.  The study found that warming temperatures will continue across the basin.

While there will not be significant changes in the mean annual precipitation, the timing of snow and rain fall will change significantly.  Future climate change inflow data was calculated at 157 locations across the Columbia River Basin.

With the warming temperatures and increased precipitation in the winter, the assessment found that runoff is expected to increase in the winter and decline in the summer.

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