Reducing Vulnerability of Water Resources of Canadian Prairies to Potential Droughts and Possible Climatic Warming

Past and the present studies show that the Canadian Prairies havebecome warmer and may have been drier in the last four to five decadesbut the drying trends are scattered and inconclusive.Statistical analysis shows that only the Winter and Fall (insome instances) precipitation is marginally related to ENSO andthe PNA (Pacific North Americ) Index, and streamflow is highlyvariable. With uncertainties on the potential impact of climaticchange and other uncertainties, several strategies are proposedto reduce the vulnerability of the Prairies to future droughts,where surface water is the primary water supply and agricultureis the major water user: (1) Continue implementing small-scalewater resources projects and increase water storage through snowmanagement, (2) increase integration between existing waterresources systems, and (3) promote water conservation measuresin agriculture practice, water pricing and water metering. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 2000