A new climate change report released by the Obama White House Tuesday highlights the trend toward scarcer water resources across a broad swath of the country.
The national climate assessment, developed by 300 scientists, seeks to explain to the public what the impact of higher temperatures will be on different regions.
The White House hopes the findings spark more action.
Climate change affects water demand and the way water is used, according to the report.
Changes in precipitation, and runoff, combined with changes in consumption and withdrawal, have reduced surface and groundwater supplies.
“These trends are expected to continue, increasing the likelihood of water shortages for many uses,” the report concluded.
Competition for water resources is expected in the Southeast, and in every region west of the Mississippi.
While California’s drought gets a lot of attention, other regions in the West are suffering. In the Northwest, changes in the timing of streamflow related to earlier snowmelt have reduced the supply of water in the summer.
Hawaii also suffers from increasingly constrained freshwater supplies.
The changes in water availability will also constrain different forms of energy production, the report concludes.
The average U.S. temperature has increased by 1.3 degrees to 1.9 degrees since record keeping began in 1895, according to the report.
Most of the increase has occurred since about 1970. The most recent decade was the warmest on record. Temperatures are expected to continue to rise.
Storm surge, rising sea levels and increased occurrence of extreme weather events are other effects of climate change.
President Barack Obama will meet with meteorologists from around the country for interviews later Tuesday to help roll out the new report.
– Greg Robb
Follow Greg on Twitter @grobb2000
Follow Capitol Report @capitolreport
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