Top of PageWhat are the impacts of climate change on water resources?
A warming climate in Canada will have impacts on water quantity and quality across the country. For example, in the Great Lakes basin climate models predict decreases in annual streamflow and lake levels. More frequent heavy downpours may cause localized flooding and overwhelm current sewage treatment facilities with increased volumes of stormwater and sewage runoff. In the Prairies, water levels in ponds, lakes and dugouts are forecast to decline, leading to changes in water chemistry, which will mean less water for irrigation for crops, livestock and drinking water in some rural regions.
