New research out of UNBC shows the impact of extreme weather on B.C.’s waterways
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PRINCE GEORGE— From heat domes in the summer to catastrophic downpours in the fall, 2021 was a wild year for weather in the Pacific Northwest. A new paper by the University of Northern British Columbia examined the impacts of these severe weather events on lakes, rivers, and creeks and the aquatic species that live in them.
“Our work demonstrates that the extreme hydrometeorological events of 2021 induced drastic changes in water temperatures across the Pacific Northwest of North America,” says UNBC Environmental Science Professor Dr. Stephen Déry, the paper’s lead author. “As climate change amplifies, these types of extreme events may become more frequent, persistent and intense with potential deleterious impacts to water quality, aquatic species and their habitats.”
Titled ‘Extreme hydrometeorological events induce abrupt and widespread freshwater temperature changes across the Pacific Northwest of North America’ the paper is a collaboration between Dr. Stephen Déry, Dr. Eduardo Martins, Dr. Philip Owens and Dr. Ellen Petticrew.
During the June 2021 heatwave researchers travelled to the traditional and unceded territory of the Nak’azdli Whut’en First Nation near Fort St. James, B.C. Data collected showed water temperature in the Necoslie River rose by 6.2 degrees celsius seven days after the heat dome began. In fact, for every one celsius in air temperature rise, the Necoslie River water temperature increased by 0.76 celsius.
