Final Report: Using Precipitation Climatology to Examine the Role of Climate Change in Extreme Events of the Mississippi River Basin
Dates
Publication Date
2023-01-13
Citation
Irenea Lodangco, and Renee McPherson, 2023-01-13, Final Report: Using Precipitation Climatology to Examine the Role of Climate Change in Extreme Events of the Mississippi River Basin: .
Summary
The greater Mississippi River Basin (MRB) drains 3.2 million square kilometers of land and spans 31 U.S. states. Ninety percent of all U.S. agricultural exports are grown in the MRB, and about 40 percent of the nation's total exports are transported through its major rivers. Ecologically, 24 terrestrial ecoregions comprise MRB, supporting amphibious, reptile, and mammal species. MRB provides habitat for almost 250 fish and 50 mussel species, its floodplain supports about 40 percent of North America’s wading birds and waterfowl, and over 180 National Wildlife Refuges operate across this region. Climate change is projected to disrupt the amount, frequency, extent, and timing of precipitation events across the MRB. These changes have [...]
Summary
The greater Mississippi River Basin (MRB) drains 3.2 million square kilometers of land and spans 31 U.S. states. Ninety percent of all U.S. agricultural exports are grown in the MRB, and about 40 percent of the nation's total exports are transported through its major rivers. Ecologically, 24 terrestrial ecoregions comprise MRB, supporting amphibious, reptile, and mammal species. MRB provides habitat for almost 250 fish and 50 mussel species, its floodplain supports about 40 percent of North America’s wading birds and waterfowl, and over 180 National Wildlife Refuges operate across this region. Climate change is projected to disrupt the amount, frequency, extent, and timing of precipitation events across the MRB. These changes have direct and indirect impacts on aquatic and riverine ecosystems.
Our research carried out an all-basin approach to establish the climatology of extreme precipitation events across the MRB and to document historical case studies of these events. A climatology of 14-day extreme precipitation events across the basin from 1990 to 2019 was established based on the criteria defined by Dickinson et al. (2021). We used a 14-day window to characterize precipitation episodes because most riverine flooding disasters occurred over periods of 14 days or longer, and these longer-duration events caused significant societal impacts. We worked with collaborators to select two cases, in 1993 and 2019, whereby we detailed the evolution of extreme precipitation and flooding, the development of associated atmospheric drivers (e.g., El Niño, La Niña) and how they acted as precursors of these events, and the impacts to biotic communities. The research has identified risks and impacts of extreme precipitation events on the specific aquatic species, wildlife, and agroecosystems supported by the rivers and streams of the MRB.
