Delaware River water resources and climate change

Abstract

Water resources are important in every aspect of human life, and river systems are one of the dominant sources of water resources. The Delaware River is a major source of water for 20 million people living in and around the river basin. The purpose of this project is to examine how the availability of water in the Delaware River may change due to climate change induced by increasing levels of atmospheric greenhouse gases. A hydrologic model was developed based on precipitation, groundwater infiltration, evaporation, snow accumulation, and management infrastructure that is in place today. By using climate change scenarios for the Delaware River Basin based on a global climate model (GCM), potential changes in streamflow, New York City reservoir storage, and salt front position are examined.