Effects of climate change on river-ice processes and ice jams

ABSTRACT

As the climate changes, ice characteristics and river-ice processes are altered, sometimes in unexpected ways. A warmer climate will obviously result in less ice globally, and in a general northward shift in the limits of seasonal river-ice occurrence. However, in several watersheds, the frequency of midwinter breakup events and the intensity of breakup ice jams may also change. In addition, climate change will alter other river-ice processes such as ice formation, freeze-up jams, and hanging dams. This is of concern during the design and construction of infrastructure as well as during the planning and implementation of flood-damage-reduction measures in and along rivers with seasonal ice covers. Changes in river-ice regimes will also alter the ecology of many lotic systems. The paper reviews the potential effects of a changing climate on river-ice properties and processes, and provides a discussion of future outcomes and their significance, as well as a suggested direction for future cold-regions river research.

KEYWORDS:

• River-ice processes
• ice jams
• climate change

Acknowledgements

This paper was prepared as part of the ongoing contributions of the Committee on River Ice Processes and the Environment (CRIPE), established under the auspices of the Hydrology Section of the Canadian Geophysical Union, to foster the advancement of, and the dissemination of information on, river-ice science and its application to engineering and ecology. The authors thank their CRIPE colleagues for their encouragement and support. The authors are also grateful for the support of their respective families and employers.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).