HR: 0800h
AN: H21G-0816    [Abstracts]
TI: Possible Scenarios of Impacts of Climatic Change on Potential Evapotranspiration in the Watershed of the Conchos River, Mexico
AU: * Raynal-Villasenor, J A
EM: josea.raynal@udlap.mx
AF: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Universidad de las Americas, Puebla, Ex-Hacienda de Santa Catarina Martir S/N, Cholula, Puebla, 72820, Mexico
AU: Rodriguez-Pineda, J A
EM: alrodriguez@wwfmex.org
AF: World Wildlife Fund-Desierto Chihuahuense, Coronado # 105, Chihuahua, Chih., 31000, Mexico
AB: The watershed of the Conchos River is the main watershed of the state of Chihuahua, Mexico, and it is the main source of water of the watershed of the Grande river downstream El Paso, Texas. Such part of the watershed of the Grande River is also the border between Mexico and the United States of America, from El Paso-Ciudad Juarez up to Brownsville-Matamoros. It is very important for the state of Chihuahua and Mexico as a whole, to construct possible scenarios of the effects of the global climatic change in the potential evapotranspiration in such watershed and to construct likely scenarios which results will help to define an integrated watershed management to mitigate those global climate change impacts. The results of a recent study sponsored by the alliance between WWF-Fundacion Gonzalo Rio Arronte, are presented in the paper. The study was conducted to construct possible scenarios on the effects of the global climatic change on the potential evapotranspiration in the watershed of the Conchos River in Mexico. Three watershed characteristic meteorological stations were selected to conduct such study. The predictions of change of the surface air temperature and the change of the rainfall produced by the global climatic change, by the end of the XXI Century, were those published by the Hadley Center. The results show that air temperature increment of one degree centigrade increases evapotranspiration values between 3 and 3.5% with respect current values. As a consequence moisture deficiency increases from 9% to 40%. With an air temperature increment of three degrees centigrades, the potential evapotranspiration increases between 8.8% and 10% increasing moisture deficiency from 27.5% up to 116%. The expected rainfall increment values show a negligible contribution for the potential evapotranspiration reduction in the Rio Conchos watershed. These results conclude that immediate actions need to be taken to mitigate climate change impacts all along the watershed.
DE: 1807 Climate impacts
DE: 1818 Evapotranspiration
DE: 1854 Precipitation (3354)
DE: 3354 Precipitation (1854)
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting