Title
Current and future water balance for coupled human-natural systems – Insights from a glacierized catchment in Peru
Date Issued
01 June 2022
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Author(s)
Motschmann A.
Teutsch C.
Huggel C.
Seidel J.
León C.D.
Muñoz R.
Sienel J.
Weimer-Jehle W.
University of Zurich
Publisher(s)
Elsevier B.V.
Abstract
Study region: Santa River basin, Peru. Study focus: In the Andes of Peru, climate change and socio-economic development are expected to jeopardize future water availability. However, little is known about the interplay of multiple climatic and non-climatic stressors and related processes driving water resource changes. We developed an integrated model that analyzes different trajectories of water availability including hydro-climatic (water supply) and socio-economic (water demand) variables with consistent multi-descriptor future scenarios until 2050. New hydrological insights for the region: At the lower-basin outflow of Condorcerro, mean annual water availability is projected to increase by 10% ± 12% by 2050. This gain is mainly driven by an increase in annual precipitation amounts of about 14% (RCP2.6) and 18% (RCP8.5), respectively, which was computed using a global climate multi-model ensemble. In contrast, mean dry-season water availability is projected to substantially decrease by 33% and 36% ( ± 24%) by 2050, for RCP2.6 and RCP8.5, respectively. This decline is driven by a combination of diminishing glacier discharge and increasing water demand both of which adopt a major role in the absence of considerable precipitation inputs. These seasonal differences highlight the need to adequately consider spatiotemporal scales within multi-scenario water balance models to support local decision-making. Our results elucidate the need for improvements in water management and infrastructure to counteract diminishing dry-season water availability and to reduce future risks of water scarcity.
Volume
41
Number
101063
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Oceanografía, Hidrología, Recursos hídricos
Investigación climática
Subjects
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85127177304
Source
Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies
ISSN of the container
22145818
Sponsor(s)
Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung - 205121L_166272 - SNF
Universität Zürich - UZH
This study is part of the DACH research project “AguaFuturo - Integrated modeling of water resources: Future risks and adaptation strategies in the Andes of Peru” funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (project no. 205121L_166272) and the German Research Foundation (DFG) (BA-1150/21-1). It is a collaboration of the Department of Geography (GIUZ), University of Zurich, Switzerland, Institute of Modeling of Hydraulic and Environmental Systems (IWS) and the Center for Interdisciplinary Risk and Innovation Studies (ZIRIUS), both University of Stuttgart, Germany. Thanks to our Peruvian partners: Área de Evaluación de Glaciares y Lagunas (previously: UGRH) of the National Water Authority and Orazul (previously: Duke Energy Orazul for providing valuable data and insights. This work was supported by Swiss National Science Foundation [project no. 205121L_166272] and the German Research Foundation (DFG) [BA-1150/21-1].
This work was supported by Swiss National Science Foundation [project no. 205121L_166272 ] and the German Research Foundation (DFG) [ BA-1150/21-1 ].
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción Científica
Scopus