Water supply affected by climate change and forest devegetation

Forests and ground vegetation are very important for our freshwater water supply resources, which is critical for humans and the natural ecosystems.

The impact of global climate change on water resources is well recognised. But what about the impact that deforestation and vegetation damage has on our freshwater supply?

Although dramatic global forest and vegetation change over the past decades has been recognised in the impact they have on water resources, this importance has not been examined quantitatively across the world until now.

The average global alteration in annual water flow due to change in vegetation is as high as 31 per cent.

Scientists from the University of British Columbia in Okanagan have discovered how changes in forest vegetation affect water resources.

Forests cover about 30 per cent of the world’s land surface and 21 per cent of the world’s population directly depends on these catchments for water supply.

The researchers examined historical data from 2000 to 2011. Using computer modelling they looked at changes in land vegetation and annual water yield in boreal and tropical forests in locations such as British Columbia, Canada, Russia, Brazil, Finland and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

They accounted for forest and vegetation loss due to intensive forest logging, development, fire and insect infestation in their calculations.

The scientists found that according to the stimulations, the average global alteration in annual water flow due to change in vegetation is as high as 31 per cent. According to their calculations, in 51 per cent of the area studied, both climate change and vegetation change operate together and can lead to either fewer water resources – this means an increased chance of drought – or increase in water supply which leads to a higher chance of devastating floods.

As we urbanize land, forests are being converted for other uses, leading to indestructible damage to our watershed and green vegetation. Along with that, climate change is also creating significant pressures on our landscape and watershed affecting our water resources.

Both climate change and vegetation change is playing a significant role in affecting water resources and ignoring either will lead to an incomplete understanding of the damage that we face which will result in ineffective management of our future water resources, especially in those areas where intensive forest changes occur.

Both climate change and vegetation change is affecting our landscape and water resources needed for the human race to survive on this planet, which makes it important to consider both phenomenon’s together to try and find effective measures for the management of global water resources.

Source: Global Change Biology