USGS Report Released: Baseline and Projected Future Carbon Storage and Greenhouse-gas Fluxes in Ecosystems of the Western United States

Recently, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) released a report titled Baseline and Projected Future Carbon Storage and Greenhouse-gas Fluxes in Ecosystems of the Western United States (USGS Professional Paper 1787). The 40-page report available here, discusses the following:

This assessment was conducted to fulfill the requirements of section 712 of the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 and to improve understanding of carbon and greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes in ecosystems of the Western United States. The assessment examined carbon storage, carbon fluxes, and other GHG fluxes (methane and nitrous oxide) in all major terrestrial ecosystems (forests, grasslands/shrublands, agricultural lands, and wetlands) and aquatic ecosystems (rivers, streams, lakes, reservoirs, and coastal waters) in two time periods: baseline (generally in the first half of the 2010s) and future (projections from baseline to 2050). The assessment was based on measured and observed data collected by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and many other agencies and organizations and used remote sensing, statistical methods, and simulation models.

Reclamation: Managing Water in the West -- DOI

The report, produced by the U.S. Department of the Interior Policy and Administration, Denver, Colorado office, (dated April 2011) responds to requirements under the SECURE Water Act of 2009, and shows several increased risks to western United States water resources during the 21st century due to climate change.

"Specific projections include:
• a temperature increase of 5-7 degrees Fahrenheit;
• a precipitation increase over the northwestern and north-central portions of the western United States and a decrease over the southwestern and south-central areas;
• a decrease for almost all of the April 1st snowpack, a standard benchmark measurement used to project river basin runoff; and
• an 8 to 20 percent decrease in average annual stream flow in several river basins, including the Colorado, the Rio Grande, and the San Joaquin."