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Climate Change Impact On Hydraulic Infrastructures

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Arba Minch University

School of post graduate studies


Hydraulic Engineering Department

Climate change impact on Hydraulic


infrastructures

By: Dawit Tamirat


Id:-RMSc/138/08
Assignment-3 literature review (Research methods)

Submitted to Alemseged Tamiru (Ph.D.)

December 31, 2016

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Impacts of climate change on Hydraulic infrastructures

According to the UNFCCC, Rising fossil fuel burning and land use changes have emitted, and
are continuing to emit, increasing quantities of greenhouse gases into the Earth’s atmosphere.
These greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrogen dioxide
(N2O), and a rise in these gases has caused a rise in the amount of heat from the sun withheld in
the Earth’s atmosphere, heat that would normally be radiated back into space. This increase in
heat has led to the greenhouse effect, resulting in climate change. The main characteristics of
climate change are increases in average global temperature (global warming); changes in cloud
cover and precipitation particularly over land; melting of ice caps and glaciers and reduced snow
cover; and increases in ocean temperatures and ocean acidity – due to seawater absorbing heat
and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. As climate continues to change, and water becomes
increasingly scarce, competition for water among the various uses will increase. Meanwhile,
demand for electricity will increase as the climate warms. However, the major uncertainty in
water resources development is the variability of water supply and demand pertaining to changes
in climate and in river basin dynamics. Therefore, water supply potential of a river basin is
sensitive to climate change and land use. The aim of this study is to assess the potential impact of
climate change on hydraulic infrastructures.

The hydraulic infrastructure is constituted by the assets of two central elements: water supply
(irrigation canal, weir, reservoirs) and energy generation facilities (hydropower). This study
deals with the durability of the structures and their engineering materials when climate change
occurred. Four vital parts of this infrastructure were selected: dams, canals, aqueducts and
hydraulic stations, which are built of two basic materials steel and concrete. The global climate
change and warming and the greenhouse-gas emissions (all interrelated complex phenomena)
affect these construction material and structures, mainly by their extreme events such as
torrential rains and flooding, dry and wet seasons, high and low humidity and solar radiation.

According to Judith A Barry., 2009, Climate Change affects Hydraulic infrastructures in


several ways:-

Increased Precipitation Intensity


Reduced Snowpack
Increased Drought
Heat Waves
Increased Wind Speeds
Reduced Supply
Increased Demand
Reduced Stream Flow
Pipe fissures due to very dry soil

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Increased Sediment Load in Streams
 Turbidity
 Reduced reservoir storage
Decreased hydraulic function (e.g., ability to discharge at outfalls).

Climate change can be addressed through two main approaches: mitigation and adaptation.
According to the UNFCCC, climate change mitigation seeks to stabilize greenhouse gas
concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic
interference with the climate system.

Mitigation policies/measures

Mitigation focuses on methodological developments for policies and or measures, i.e. a modeling
approach that allows development of policies (Warren et al., 2008) and a discussion of the pros
and cons of economy-wide and technology-specific approaches for carbon-reduction targets
(Sanden and Azar, 2005). As cited in Emile J.L. Chappin, Telli van der Lei et al., 2014).

Adaptation to climate change

Adaptation is processes through which societies make themselves better able to cope with an
uncertain future. Adapting to climate change entails taking the right measures to reduce the
negative effects of climate change (or exploit the positive ones) by making the appropriate
adjustments and changes. There are many options and opportunities to adapt. These ranges from
technological options such as by selecting area centered materials when we construct different
infrastructures on water, by creating several strategies to limit the effect of flood such as better
water management to prevent the structures from flood, and improved risk management. As cited
in (Ellina Levina and Dennis Tirpak, OECD et al., 2006).

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References

Arnell, N.W., 2004. Climate change and global water resources: SRES scenarios and socio-
economic scenarios. Global Environmental Change.

IWMI (142) Research report.

Judith A Barry, Ph.D., 7 May 2009. Water and Waste water Infrastructure and Climate Change

Emile J.L. Chappin, Telli van der Lei., 2014).

Ellina Levina and Dennis Tirpak, OECD, May 2006.

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