Severe storm flooding struck New York state’s Mohawk Valley on multiple occasions this year, while access to its reservoir already is being fought over by competing users, reports Brian Ackerman at the Utica Observer-Dispatch. Flooding and water-supply issues are expected to intensify statewide as the result of climate change, according to a recent study funded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. The study looks into the effects of climate change on water resources, coastal zones, ecosystems, agriculture, energy, transportation, telecommunications and public health. Temperatures will increase by 4 to 9 degrees by the 2080s, and precipitation will go up 5 to 15 percent, said study author and Cornell University earth scientist Art DeGaetano. A warmer atmosphere holds more water vapor, increasing the frequency of heavier downpours, said Cynthia Rosenzweig, another study scientist. That means the climate change projected by the study will lead to increased instances of extreme rainfall – with longer dry periods in between, the investigators said. Besides this year’s storm floods, flooding devastated much of the region in 2006. Such occurrences are examples of the climate change projected in the study, said Rosenzweig.
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Region’s flooding, water issues not going away. Severe flooding struck the Mohawk Valley on multiple occasions this year. Access to water in Hinckley Reservoir already is being fought over by competing users. Flooding and water-supply issues are expected to intensify statewide as the result of climate change, according to a recent study. Utica Observer-Dispatch
