HR: 17:30h
AN: C54A-06    [Abstracts]
TI: Future freshwater demands in the Arctic
AU: * White, D
EM: ffdmw@uaf.edu
AF: University of Alaska, Fairbanks - Water and Environmental Research Center (UAF-WERC), Box 755860, Fairbanks, AK 99775-5860 United States
AU: Strang, E T
EM: ftets@uaf.edu
AF: University of Alaska, Fairbanks - Water and Environmental Research Center (UAF-WERC), Box 755860, Fairbanks, AK 99775-5860 United States
AU: Hinzman, L
EM: ffldh@uaf.edu
AF: University of Alaska, Fairbanks - Water and Environmental Research Center (UAF-WERC), Box 755860, Fairbanks, AK 99775-5860 United States
AU: Alessa, L
EM: afla@uaa.alaska.edu
AF: University of Alaska, Anchorage - Resilience and Adaptive Management Group (UAA-RAM), 3211 Providence Drive, Anchorage, AK 99508 United States
AU: Kliskey, A
EM: afadk@uaa.alaska.edu
AF: University of Alaska, Anchorage - Resilience and Adaptive Management Group (UAA-RAM), 3211 Providence Drive, Anchorage, AK 99508 United States
AB: The overall objective of our research is to understand how humans rely on freshwater at local and regional scales in the Arctic, how these dependencies have changed in the recent past, and how they are likely to change in the future. This study will take place on the Seward Peninsula where climate induced changes in the hydrologic cycle are already being observed. This presentation will describe the human dependencies on freshwater in the Arctic. In particular, we will discuss the effects of inadequate quantity or quality of freshwater on Arctic inhabitants. The freshwater used by humans in the Arctic for drinking, cooking, and washing is derived in many cases from surface water, such as lakes and streams. Since the surface water frozen 6-9 months of the year in the Arctic, communities that rely on rivers and lakes must treat and store large volumes of water for use during winter. The stored water must be heated throughout the winter and distributed on an as-needed basis. Unfortunately, when not enough water can be gathered in the summer or stored in the winter, the entire community may be without freshwater. During these months, water must be collected by individuals from ice, snow, and rain. Collecting water during breakup can be dangerous. River ice is rotten, there is too little snow for snow mobiles, and the tundra is too soft all terrain vehicles. While the state of Alaska and Federal programs are making progress towards developing sustainable water sources for Alaska's Arctic communities, freshwater remains a precious commodity. Communities throughout the Arctic, including Canada and Russia, have similar problems with obtaining and purifying freshwater. As climate induced changes are being observed in the Arctic, the threat to the freshwater resource is now a greater concern than ever. This study is being funded under the NSF Arctic System Science Program, Human Dimensions of the Arctic (OPP-0328686).
DE: 9315 Arctic region
DE: 1655 Water cycles (1836)
DE: 1699 General or miscellaneous
DE: 1836 Hydrologic budget (1655)
DE: 1884 Water supply
SC: Cryosphere [C]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting