Pacific Northwest Region

Columbia River Basin Impacts Assessment

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The Columbia River Basin Impacts Assessment is an activity of the West Wide Climate Risk Assessments (WWCRA), which is part of the Bureau of Reclamation’s WaterSMART Basin Study Program. This Program is authorized to address Section 9503 of the SECURE Water Act and Secretarial Orders 3289 and 3297 supporting the Department of Interior’s coordinated response to the changing climate and the WaterSMART Program.

SECURE authorizes Reclamation to assess the impacts of climate change on water supplies (including snowpack, surface water and ground water) and demands by evaluating the following components of SECURE in major Western United States basins:

• water delivery
• flooding
• recreation at Reclamation facilities
• hydropower
• fish and wildlife habitat
• species listed as endangered, threatened or candidates under ESA
• water quality (including salinity as it applies to water quality)
• flow and water dependent ecological resiliency

Impacts Assessments establish baseline risks to water supplies and demands in Reclamation river basins to establish a foundation for more in-depth analyses and the development of adaptation strategies. The information determined in an Impacts Assessment is used as a foundation to Basin Studies, operations planning, feasibility level analyses, or any other activity that can benefit from the results.

The Assessment will result in a better understanding the potential impacts of climate change on the eight components identified in SECURE in the Columbia River Basin. The Assessment was initiated in June 2013 and is expected to completed in December 2015.

Related Links
WaterSMART
RMJOC Climate Change Study
Data.gov-Climate Change
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Downscaled CMIP3 and CMIP5 Climate and Hydrology Projections
National Climate Assessment

Contact

Carri Hessman
Program Manager
(208) 378-5106
chessman@usbr.gov

Bureau of Reclamation
Pacific Northwest Regional Office
1150 North Curtis Road, Suite 100
Boise, Idaho 83706-1234