Hydropower, water institutions and climate change

Continued accumulation of CO₂ and other greenhouse gases may result in significant global warming and in altered patterns of precipitation and runoff within the next century. Competition between out‐of‐stream water uses and hydroelectric generation may increase as a result of reductions in runoff or changes in its timing and reliability. The impacts of such changes will depend on the pre‐existing nature and distribution of water rights and on the adaptability of water institutions to changing conditions. The analogous case of growing competition between hydropower production and irrigation in Idaho's Snake River Basin suggests that water institutions tend to evolve in response to increased competitive pressure on the resource. Such adjustments would help to mitigate the impact of climate change on electric utilities by allowing more efficient use of the available water.