Sampriti Roy, University of Calcutta
Accelerated climate change due to global warming is a well-known reality today. While the concept of climate change is unknown to few, there remain many grey areas about the effects of this ongoing phenomenon. This calls for rigorous research and the same is currently being done all over the world leading to discoveries that answer significant questions about our future. One such discovery is of a condition that could impact agriculture, fire danger and ski conditions, among other parameters across North America- the increasing melting of snow in winters.
Snow is the primary source of streamflow and water in western North America. It is responsible for providing water to 1 billion people globally. Snow is generally found to accumulate over the winter season. It keeps increasing its growth until a point is reached where it reaches maximum depth and ultimately starts melting. In the spring, the snowy mountains facilitate the formation of a natural drip irrigation system by acting like water towers that reserve water at high altitudes until it melts. This makes the water accessible to lower elevations that depend on it during the summer.
A study done recently by the University of Colorado has given us some interesting proposals regarding winter snowmelt and how it could act as an indicator of hydrological change. The concerning observation found about snowmelt patterns that make the study particularly significant is that one-third of 1,065 stations that measure snow (from the border of Mexico to the Alaskan Arctic) have recorded an increase in snowmelt in winter since the 1970s. The study in discussion has found that melt before April has increased since the late 1970s at a concerning rate- with an increase by an average of 3.5% being recorded per decade since the said year in half of more than 600 Western North American stations. One of the concerning conclusions the study led to was that the winter’s boundary with spring has been decreasing since said year.
What exactly is snowpack and how is it an important indicator of climate change?
Snowpack can be defined as slow-melting packed snow that accumulates seasonally and usually melts during warmer seasons. Typically, the snowpack is calculated by taking into account how much water will be produced when the same melts. This is called the snow-water equivalent (SWE), which is affected by seasonal snowfall. However, it could be called a better indicator of climate change since the melting of snowpack is influenced more by temperature than it is by precipitation.
There are several automated snowpack stations across the Western USA that are monitoring snow constantly through sensors that are tucked away, out of the sight of outdoor enthusiasts, in the ground. The study in discussion has used automated and constantly recording snowpack stations. After compiling data from all of the 1,065 automated stations in Western North America, statistical insight about winter melt trends and how widespread they are was found.
How does this increase in winter snowmelt affect the common people?
Water managers have used April 1st to distinguish between spring and winter. However, according to Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR) fellow Noah Moltoch, this distinction is getting increasingly blurred as snowmelt increases during winter.
The entirety of the water infrastructure of the West has been built over the gradual meltwater trickle that occurs during each dry season, i.e. the water flowing down through streams during July and August. The observed time shift of meltwater occurrence, which turns on the aforesaid natural drip irrigation more frequently in winters, is causing increasing concerns in terms of drought prediction and water resource management. Drought prediction in the West especially depends upon levels of late winter snowpack in March and April. However, the shift in the time of delivery of water means that there could be hardship in accurately predicting the same, which could also affect irrigation needs in agriculture and preparation for wildfire seasons.
There are also some significant ecological implications of wetter soil in winters such as:
- Flash flooding: When soils are wet, they cannot soak up additional water anymore during rainstorms or spring melt, which can lead to an increase in flash flooding.
- Disturbed timing of nutrient availability: Frozen soils during the winter keeps the soil microbes dormant. However, with wetter soils in the winter, these microbes are unfrozen and tend to become active. As a result of this untimely activation, the timing of nutrient availability in an ecosystem is severely affected and along with it, the water quality. The untimely activation may also cause an increase in carbon dioxide emissions.
What does this study imply in terms of water management?
Through the study, it was found that “continental-scale snow water resources are in steeper decline than inferred from SWE trends alone”. The authors have proposed that snowmelt serves as a critical indicator of hydrological change along with SWE. More winter snowmelt as a consequence of a warming Earth is predicted to complicate future water resource management and planning. If the findings of this study are not disproved, it would mean that policies and further research would need to proceed to keep the findings in mind. The study could thus have a significant effect on future modifications in the water infrastructure of America and other countries experiencing untimely snowmelt.
Also read: Vaccines for children: as the race against COVID surges!
Source:“Winter melt trends portend widespread declines in snow water resources” by Keith N. Musselman, Nans Addor, Julie A. Vano and Noah P. Molotch, Nature Climate Change. DOI: 10.1038/s41558-021-01014-9
- The Corrosion Prediction from the Corrosion Product Performance
- Nitrogen Resilience in Waterlogged Soybean plants
- Cell Senescence in Type II Diabetes: Therapeutic Potential
- Transgene-Free Canker-Resistant Citrus sinensis with Cas12/RNP
- AI Literacy in Early Childhood Education: Challenges and Opportunities
One thought on “The connection between Winter Snow Melting and Water Resources!!!”