Search Results

Now showing 1 - 10 of 108
  • Item
    What can we learn from the projections of changes of flow patterns? Results from Polish case studies
    (Heidelberg : Springer, 2017) Piniewski, Mikołaj; Meresa, Hadush Kidane; Romanowicz, Renata; Osuch, Marzena; Szczes´niak, Mateusz; Kardel, Ignacy; Okruszko, Tomasz; Mezghani, Abdelkader; Kundzewicz, Zbigniew W.
    River flow projections for two future time horizons and RCP 8.5 scenario, generated by two projects (CHASE-PL and CHIHE) in the Polish-Norwegian Research Programme, were compared. The projects employed different hydrological models over different spatial domains. The semi-distributed, process-based, SWAT model was used in the CHASE-PL project for the entire Vistula and Odra basins area, whilst the lumped, conceptual, HBV model was used in the CHIHE project for eight Polish catchments, for which the comparison study was made. Climate projections in both studies originated from the common EURO-CORDEX dataset, but they were different, e.g. due to different bias correction approaches. Increases in mean annual and seasonal flows were projected in both studies, yet the magnitudes of changes were largely different, in particular for the lowland catchments in the far future. The HBV-based increases were significantly higher in the latter case than the SWAT-based increases in all seasons except winter. Uncertainty in projections is high and creates a problem for practitioners.
  • Item
    Saltwater intrusion under climate change in North-Western Germany - mapping, modelling and management approaches in the projects TOPSOIL and go-CAM
    (Les Ulis : EDP Sciences, 2018) Wiederhold, Helga; Scheer, Wolfgang; Kirsch, Reinhard; Azizur Rahman, M.; Ronczka, Mathias; Szymkiewicz, Adam; Sadurski, A.; Jaworska-Szulc, B.
    Climate change will result in rising sea level and, at least for the North Sea region, in rising groundwater table. This leads to a new balance at the fresh–saline groundwater boundary and a new distribution of saltwater intrusions with strong regional differentiations. These effects are investigated in several research projects funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Objectives and some results from the projects TOPSOIL and go-CAM are presented in this poster.
  • Item
    Potential climate change impacts on the water balance of subcatchments of the River Spree, Germany
    (München : European Geopyhsical Union, 2012) Pohle, I.; Koch, H.; Grünewald, U.
    Lusatia is considered one of the driest regions of Germany. The climatic water balance is negative even under current climate conditions. Due to global climate change, increased temperatures and a shift of precipitation from summer to winter are expected. Therefore, it is of major interest whether the excess water in winter can be stored and to which extent it is used up on increasing evapotranspiration. Thus, this study focuses on estimating potential climate change impacts on the water balance of two subcatchments of the River Spree using the Soil and Water Integrated Model (SWIM). Climate input was taken from 100 realisations each of two scenarios of the STatistical Analogue Resampling scheme STAR assuming a further temperature increase of 0 K (scenario A) and 2 K by the year 2055 (scenario B) respectively. Resulting from increased temperatures and a shift in precipitation from summer to winter actual evapotranspiration is supposed to increase in winter and early spring, but to decrease in later spring and early summer. This is less pronounced for scenario A than for scenario B. Consequently, also the decrease in discharge and groundwater recharge in late spring is lower for scenario A than for scenario B. The highest differences of runoff generation and groundwater recharge between the two scenarios but also the highest ranges within the scenarios occur in summer and early autumn. It is planned to estimate potential climate change for the catchments of Spree, Schwarze Elster and Lusatian Neisse.
  • Item
    Assessment of climate change and associated impact on selected sectors in Poland
    (Warsaw : De Gruyter Open, 2018) Kundzewicz, Zbigniew W.; Piniewski, Mikołaj; Mezghani, Abdelkader; Okruszko, Tomasz; Pińskwar, Iwona; Kardel, Ignacy; Hov, Øystein; Szcześniak, Mateusz; Szwed, Małgorzata; Benestad, Rasmus E.; Marcinkowski, Paweł; Graczyk, Dariusz; Dobler, Andreas; Førland, Eirik J.; O’Keefe, Joanna; Choryński, Adam; Parding, Kajsa M.; Haugen, Jan Erik
    The present paper offers a brief assessment of climate change and associated impact in Poland, based on selected results of the Polish–Norwegian CHASE-PL project. Impacts are examined in selected sectors, such as water resources, natural hazard risk reduction, environment, agriculture and health. Results of change detection in long time series of observed climate and climate impact variables in Poland are presented. Also, projections of climate variability and change are provided for time horizons of 2021–2050 and 2071–2100 for two emission scenarios, RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 in comparison with control period, 1971–2000. Based on climate projections, examination of future impacts on sectors is also carried out. Selected uncertainty issues relevant to observations, understanding and projections are tackled as well.
  • Item
    Assessment of climate change impacts on water resources in three representative ukrainian catchments using eco-hydrological modelling
    (Basel : MDPI AG, 2017) Didovets, I.; Lobanova, A.; Bronstert, A.; Snizhko, S.; Maule, C.F.; Krysanova, V.
    The information about climate change impact on river discharge is vitally important for planning adaptation measures. The future changes can affect different water-related sectors. The main goal of this study was to investigate the potential water resource changes in Ukraine, focusing on three mesoscale river catchments (Teteriv, UpperWestern Bug, and Samara) characteristic for different geographical zones. The catchment scale watershed model-Soil and Water Integrated Model (SWIM)-was setup, calibrated, and validated for the three catchments under consideration. A set of seven GCM-RCM (General Circulation Model-Regional Climate Model) coupled climate scenarios corresponding to RCPs (Representative Concentration Pathways) 4.5 and 8.5 were used to drive the hydrological catchment model. The climate projections, used in the study, were considered as three combinations of low, intermediate, and high end scenarios. Our results indicate the shifts in the seasonal distribution of runoff in all three catchments. The spring high flow occurs earlier as a result of temperature increases and earlier snowmelt. The fairly robust trend is an increase in river discharge in the winter season, and most of the scenarios show a potential decrease in river discharge in the spring.
  • Item
    Climate or land use? - Attribution of changes in river flooding in the Sahel zone
    (Basel : MDPI AG, 2015) Aich, V.; Liersch, S.; Vetter, T.; Andersson, J.C.M.; Müller, E.N.; Hattermann, F.F.
  • Item
    Climate change, agriculture, and economic development in Ethiopia
    (Basel : MDPI AG, 2018) Yalew, A.W.; Hirte, G.; Lotze-Campen, H.; Tscharaktschiew, S.
    Quantifying the economic effects of climate change is a crucial step for planning adaptation in developing countries. This study assesses the economy-wide and regional effects of climate change-induced productivity and labor supply shocks in Ethiopian agriculture. We pursue a structural approach that blends biophysical and economic models. We consider different crop yield projections and add a regionalization to the country-wide CGE results. The study shows, in the worst case scenario, the effects on country-wide GDP may add up to -8%. The effects on regional value-added GDP are uneven and range from -10% to +2.5%. However, plausible cost-free exogenous structural change scenarios in labor skills and marketing margins may offset about 20-30% of these general equilibrium effects. As such, the ongoing structural transformation in the country may underpin the resilience of the economy to climate change. This can be regarded as a co-benefit of structural change in the country. Nevertheless, given the role of the sector in the current economic structure and the potency of the projected biophysical impacts, adaptation in agriculture is imperative. Otherwise, climate change may make rural livelihoods unpredictable and strain the country's economic progress.
  • Item
    Characterizing half-a-degree difference: a review of methods for identifying regional climate responses to global warming targets
    (Hoboken, NJ : Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2017) James, R.; Washington, R.; Schleussner, C.-F.; Rogelj, J.; Conway, D.
    The Paris Agreement long-term global temperature goal refers to two global warming levels: well below 2°C and 1.5°C above preindustrial. Regional climate signals at specific global warming levels, and especially the differences between 1.5°C and 2°C, are not well constrained, however. In particular, methodological challenges related to the assessment of such differences have received limited attention. This article reviews alternative approaches for identifying regional climate signals associated with global temperature limits, and evaluates the extent to which they constitute a sound basis for impacts analysis. Four methods are outlined, including comparing data from different greenhouse gas scenarios, sub-selecting climate models based on global temperature response, pattern scaling, and extracting anomalies at the time of each global temperature increment. These methods have rarely been applied to compare 2°C with 1.5°C, but some demonstrate potential avenues for useful research. Nevertheless, there are methodological challenges associated with the use of existing climate model experiments, which are generally designed to model responses to different levels of greenhouse gas forcing, rather than to model climate responses to a specific level of forcing that targets a given level of global temperature change. Novel approaches may be required to address policy questions, in particular: to differentiate between half degree warming increments while accounting for different sources of uncertainty; to examine mechanisms of regional climate change including the potential for nonlinear responses; and to explore the relevance of time-lagged processes in the climate system and declining emissions, and the resulting sensitivity to alternative mitigation pathways. WIREs Clim Change 2017, 8:e457. doi: 10.1002/wcc.457. For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website.
  • Item
    Case Study Report "The Renewable Energy Sector: Solar PV Market"
    (Hamilton, NZ : University of Waikato, 2017-03-26) Gogoi Saikia, Madhumita; Fang, Molly; Deraman, Mohd. Yusoff Bin; Carson, Tayla; Taylor, Wanida; Fang, Yixuan
    The renewable energy industry is the future of power consumption. Green electricity or renewable energy is generated from natural resources which has less environment impact to our Earth compared to fossil fuel energy. Using renewable energy reduces the amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. These will help to reduce climate change or global warming. Renewable energy sources like solar energy will reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and noble gases which are in a current state of depletion (Uswitch, 2017). The solar photovoltaic (PV) systems harness the solar energy from the sun and convert this to usable electricity. These systems have a huge amount of growth potential with exponential growth in population and a constant need for power supplies. There has been a steady increase in the current growth of solar PV systems with no indication of a future decline. It was found that this technology is more viable in Asian countries due to low production and wage costs for labour. The main variables causing growth in this sector is population growth and increased per capita income. There are also continuous environmental public policies being set which favour the use of renewable energy resources including solar PV systems. Crystalline silica is the most common main component used needed to produce these systems and the changing cost of this will affect the future market. Using Porter’s competitive model, it was found that the rivalry among competitors is medium to high. There is little threat of substitute products entering the market. Suppliers possess medium to high level of power to bargain. There has been an increasing number of installation of solar PV panels which indicates that in the future the bargaining power of customers could be considerably high. The price elasticity for the solar market was found to be relatively high. Overall there is high potential for growth within this industry and no indication that there would be a decline in the years to come.