The arctic freshwater system: Changes and impacts

Abstract

Dramatic changes have been observed in the Arctic over the last century. Many of these involve the storage and cycling of fresh water. On land, precipitation and river discharge, lake abundance and size, glacier area and volume, soil moisture, and a variety of permafrost characteristics have changed. In the ocean, sea ice thickness and areal coverage have decreased and water mass circulation patterns have shifted, changing freshwater pathways and sea ice cover dynamics. Precipitation onto the ocean surface has also changed. Such changes are expected to continue, and perhaps accelerate, in the coming century, enhanced by complex feedbacks between the oceanic, atmospheric, and terrestrial freshwater systems. Change to the arctic freshwater system heralds changes for our global physical and ecological environment as well as human activities in the Arctic. In this paper we review observed changes in the arctic freshwater system over the last century in terrestrial, atmospheric, and oceanic systems. KeywordsArctic, Freshwater, System, Changes, Impacts [1] Dramatic changes have been observed in the Arctic over the last century. Many of these involve the storage and cycling of fresh water. On land, precipitation and river discharge, lake abundance and size, glacier area and volume, soil moisture, and a variety of permafrost characteristics have changed. In the ocean, sea ice thickness and areal coverage have decreased and water mass circulation patterns have shifted, changing freshwater pathways and sea ice cover dynamics. Precipitation onto the ocean surface has also changed. Such changes are expected to continue, and perhaps accelerate, in the coming century, enhanced by complex feedbacks between the oceanic, atmospheric, and terrestrial freshwater systems. Change to the arctic freshwater system heralds changes for our global physical and ecological environment as well as human activities in the Arctic. In this paper we review observed changes in the arctic freshwater system over the last century in terrestrial, atmospheric, and oceanic systems.

Relevance of Hydro-Climatic Change Projection and Monitoring for Assessment of Water Cycle Changes in the Arctic

“…Many of the environmental changes that have been observed, and also are expected in the future, manifest themselves through changes in the hydrological cycle White et al 2007;Dyurgerov et al 2010). Changing dynamics of the water cycle may have large impacts on infrastructure (Lawrence and Slater 2005), transportation, natural resource exploration (Lange 2008), and other economic activities in the region.…”

The relationship between subsurface hydrology and dissolved carbon fluxes for a sub-arctic catchment

“…These include decreasing depth and duration of snowcover (Brown and Braaten, 1998;Curtis et al, 1998), permafrost warming and thawing (Stieglitz et al, 2003;Walvoord and Striegl, 2007;Osterkamp, 2007), increasing precipitation frequency and amount (Walsh, 2000; Correspondence to: S. W. Lyon (steve.lyon@natgeo.su.se) McCabe et al, 2001), increasing freshwater discharge (Peterson et al, 2002) and earlier spring flood peak discharges . The terrestrial freshwater cycle in the arctic and sub-arctic is often intimately connected with the presence of permafrost (White et al, 2007;Woo et al, 2008) and the depth to the permafrost largely determines the pathways of water flow through the landscape (Kane et al, 1981). In addition to influencing the hydrological response of the landscape, the location and distribution of these pathways influence the carbon and other biogeochemical cycling in northern latitude catchments (e.g., MacLean et al, 1999;McNamara et al, 2008).…”

Seasonal and hydrologic drivers of dissolved organic matter and nutrients in the upper Kuparuk River, Alaskan Arctic

“…The Arctic freshwater system has changed dramatically over recent decades, and changes are expected to accelerate in the future (Chapin et al 2000;Rouse et al 1997;Arctic Climate Impact Assessment 2005;Anisimov et al 2007;White et al 2007). For example, river discharge to the Arctic Ocean has increased (Peterson et al 2002;McClelland et al 2006), and climate models suggest that enhanced net precipitation over the pan-Arctic watershed under warmer conditions will support greater increases in continental runoff over the twenty-first century (Holland et al 2006Meehl et al 2006;Francis et al 2009).…”