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1 - Climate change and the global water cycle

from Part I - Understanding ‘water’

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 August 2011

By
Richard Lawford
Edited by
R. Quentin Grafton  and
Karen Hussey
Richard Lawford
Affiliation:
University of Maryland
R. Quentin Grafton
Affiliation:
Australian National University, Canberra
Karen Hussey
Affiliation:
Australian National University, Canberra
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Summary

Background

The global water cycle links climate and hydrology and plays a critical role in the climate system. The perception that humans are responsible for an inevitable change in the climate is gaining widespread acceptance. In particular, the most recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC FAR, 2007) affirms that climate change is already taking place and that its main cause involves human activities. Although the spectre of climate change is leading to many concerns about human livelihoods and ecosystem sustainability, nowhere are such concerns greater than those related to the impacts of this change on freshwater resources and their implications for society. Water-cycle scientists are considering the implications of climate change for the water cycle by addressing large-scale questions such as ‘Is the global water cycle accelerating or intensifying?’, as well as questions about local and watershed scale impacts.

Water plays a critical role in the welfare of societies around the world and affects the livelihood of every human. It is essential for the maintenance of life. Virtually all living fauna and flora consist of a significant proportion of water and must maintain those proportions for life to continue. More generally, water is an essential input that strongly affects the productivity and success of a number of economic sectors, from agriculture to energy production. It is also a means of transportation and a source of clean energy.

Type
Chapter
Information
Water Resources Planning and Management , pp. 3 - 22
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2011

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