The canary in the icefield
Paula Duhatschek and Dan McGarvey
CBC News
September 5, 2023
Scientists have tracked the fate of the Peyto Glacier in the Rocky Mountains for decades as a global reference point. It’s disappearing faster than expected — a warning sign for communities downstream.
We are pleased to announce two Hydrology Seminars on Thursday, July 13th by Professors Döerthe Tetzlaff and Chris Soulsby. The seminars will be held at the Coldwater Lab in Canmore and on Zoom.
Prof. Dörthe Tetzlaff – July 13 @ 10 am MDT/CST
Please click here to register
Döerthe Tetzlaff is Professor of Ecohydrology at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Head of Department “Ecohydrology & Biogeochemistry” at IGB Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Germany. Prof. Tetzlaff’s presentation is entitled: Ecohydrological fluxes and storage dynamics in a drought sensitive lowland catchment, Germany.
Prof. Chris Soulsby – July 13 @ 2 pm MDT/CST
Please click here to register
Chris Soulsby is Professor of Hydrology at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. Prof. Soulsby’s presentation is entitled: The last salmon? Impacts of climate change on the ecohydrology of mountain streams in the Cairngorm National Park, Scotland.
Banff records hottest May ever, Athabasca Glacier melts over winter
Cathy Ellis
Rocky Mountain Outlook
June 8, 2023
“It was the fastest snow melt I’ve ever seen…I’ve never seen anything like this,” said John Pomeroy, director of the University of Saskatchewan’s Centre for Hydrology in Canmore and the Canada Research Chair in Water Resources and Climate Change.
Experts express concerns over less rainfall, early snowmelt in Alberta
Boshika Gupta
CBC News
June 8, 2023
As Alberta continues to fight wildfires and deal with extreme heat warnings, climate experts are wondering what the next few months will look like for the province in terms of adequate water supply.
Calgary monitoring river levels amid below-average mountain snowpack levels
Bill Macfarlane
CTV News Calgary
June 6, 2023
The City of Calgary is keeping a close eye on water levels for several reasons this spring, including hot, dry weather and below-average mountain snowpack levels.
Caroline Aubry-Wake receives Governor General Award
Global Water Futures
University of Saskatchewan
June 1, 2023
Dr. Caroline Aubry-Wake (PhD) will receive the 2023 Governor General’s Gold Medal at the 2023 University of Saskatchewan (USask) spring convocation June 6.
USask-led Global Water Futures marks the end of an era and looks to the future
Mark Ferguson
Global Institute for Water Security and Global Water Futures
University of Saskatchewan
May 21, 2023
Hundreds of scientists and researchers from across Canada have gathered in Saskatoon for the finale of the world’s largest university freshwater research program, a seven-year initiative led by the University of Saskatchewan (USask).
Brace for a hot, dry Saskatchewan summer: Environment Canada
Laura Woodward
CTV News Saskatoon
May 15, 2023
While it’s still spring, it feels more like summer in Saskatchewan — and temperatures are forecasted to continue to be higher than average into the summer.
After early heat, experts say Prairies to face climate challenges in season ahead
Ethan Williams
CBC News Saskatchewan
May 15, 2023
Researchers say intense fires and water security issues could be especially pronounced this summer.
Join us on Sunday, May 7th from 6:00 – 7:00pm for a public lecture with Professor John Pomeroy:
The Hydrology, Snow and Glaciers of the Canadian Rockies in an Era of Global Change
John Pomeroy, Centre for Hydrology, University of Saskatchewan, Canmore, Alberta
The melt of snow and ice supplies freshwater for over half of humanity, and provides a vast proportion of the freshwater available for ecosystems, hydroelectricity, irrigation, industry, and communities in downstream regions. This water supply is threatened by climate warming which is reducing snowfall and increasing the atmospheric energy available to melt snow and ice. The Canadian Rockies are the hydrological apex of North America and the source of rivers flowing to three oceans. Here, over 60% of river discharge is supplied by the melt of snow and ice, and climate warming is proceeding faster than in other parts of the world. Climate variability is also increasing in these headwaters, and since the turn of the century some exceptionally low river flows and large floods have occurred. To understand these impacts, research by the University of Saskatchewan’s Centre for Hydrology and partners from its base at the Coldwater Laboratory in Canmore, Alberta has focused on increasing our understanding of snow accumulation and melt processes in alpine and forested environments, glacier hydrology, and the role of soils, forests and wetlands in governing streamflow generation. This understanding has been used to develop computer simulation models of current and future hydrology that can be used for forecasting snowcover, floods and droughts, for prediction of future streamflows and for diagnosing how hydrological, glacier and ecological change are interacting with climate change to produce new behaviours in mountain rivers. These predictions can be used to develop water management solutions to some impacts of global change. They also show that resilience of hydrological systems to change is evident, but there remains a substantial risk of crossing tipping points in the near future that may lead to large changes and greater uncertainty in future water supplies.
Sunday, May 7th
6:00 – 7:00 PM
Banff Park Lodge