Investigators

Assessing the future projection of soil moisture and streamflow in the Canadian Prairie region relative to tree-ring reconstructions of the past millennium

Project lead:

David J. Sauchyn, PhD, PGeo
Director, Prairie Adaptation Research Collaborative (PARC)
Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies
University of Regina, SK

Project description

The research problem addressed by the proposed project is the security and resiliency of prairie industrial water supplies in a changing climate. This problem is significant because water-consumptive industries in the Prairie Provinces are a major contributor to the national economy, but they depend on secure and reliable water supplies in a region characterized by a permanent water deficit (in average years). Given the potential for prolonged water deficits in a future warmer climate, there is no guarantee that industrial water allocations will have sufficient priority to be honoured. The proposed project adopts a novel methodology, involving the assimilation of paleo and projected hydroclimate, to investigate the extent to which future soil moisture and streamflow might depart from the hydroclimate of the past millennium.