Royster, Judith V. --- "Climate change and tribal water rights: removing barriers to adaptation strategies" [2013] ELECD 244; in Abate, S. Randall; Kronk, Ann Elizabeth (eds), "Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2013) 218

Book Title: Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples

Editor(s): Abate, S. Randall; Kronk, Ann Elizabeth

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781781001790

Section: Chapter 11

Section Title: Climate change and tribal water rights: removing barriers to adaptation strategies

Author(s): Royster, Judith V.

Number of pages: 23

Abstract/Description:

The effects of climate change on water resources in the United States are well understood in general outline. Specific effects will vary by region of the country, but the identified impacts include lower precipitation and increased drought in the south; increased precipitation in the north, but in the form of less frequent, heavier rains; less snowpack and earlier snowmelt, leading to higher water levels and potential flooding earlier in the spring, and less water available in summer when water is most needed for irrigation and instream flows; increased evaporation; increased water temperatures; increased water pollution; and increased demand for water. Taken together, these effects of climate change will likely have ‘profound impacts on water resource availability’.