Citation | Pinna Sustainability. 2014. The future of atmospheric rivers and actions to reduce impacts on British Columbians. Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium. |
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Organization | PCIC |
URL | https://www.pacificclimate.org/sites/default/files/publications/Atmospheric_Rivers-Final.pdf |
Abstract/Description or Keywords | Extreme precipitation and flooding impact communities across British Columbia (BC). Some impacts along the coast are the result of ‘Atmospheric River’ (AR) events. An atmospheric river is an intense and relatively narrow flow of moisture-laden air. In British Columbia, atmospheric rivers most frequently occur in the fall and winter. Their impacts are greatest on British Columbia’s coast where moist air is forced to rise over the Coast Mountains, resulting in intense precipitation. Atmospheric rivers have triggered a number of flood events over the past decade in BC that required intensive emergency response efforts. To improve local understanding and manage the impacts of atmospheric river events, the BC Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Canada commissioned work to summarize the current state of knowledge pertaining to BC on this topic and conduct a multi-agency qualitative risk assessment. In April 2013, scientists and researchers gathered in Victoria, BC to review and summarize the current state of knowledge on atmospheric rivers. As a result of their efforts, the Pacific Climate Impacts Consortium (PCIC) and Pinna Sustainability produced an ‘Atmospheric River State of Knowledge Report’ which: • Summarized the current understanding of AR events, • Explored ways to enhance understanding through scientific research, • Identified ways stakeholders can work together to enhance our collective response, and • Outlined key stakeholders to be engaged in this process. Based on recommendations in this initial report, the Ministry of the Environment commissioned further work to explore future predictions of AR events and map potential indicators of vulnerability to impacts across the province. On February 27th, 2014, the BC Ministry of the Environment, the PCIC and Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions (PICS) co-hosted a workshop to discuss the risks associated with extreme precipitation events in British Columbia in a changing climate. Participants included: • Climate scientists, to share research on projecting extreme precipitation • Weather forecasters, to discuss challenges in forecasting extreme precipitation and communicating potentially dangerous events to vulnerable communities • Responders from the BC Government and local communities, to share their knowledge and experience of ‘on the ground’ responses. This second report summarizes the activities which took place during the workshop, provides a high level summary of future predictions in extreme weather, offers insights from attempts to map vulnerability, and summarizes efforts to identify high impact consequences and priority areas of action to reduce those impacts. |
Information Type | report |
Regional Watershed | Province |
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Project status | complete |
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