Idaho Climate and Water Forecasts for the 2010 Water Year

October 22, 2009
9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Boise, Idaho

The Climate Impacts Group Annual Fall Forecast Meeting

Every fall, the Climate Impacts Group at the University of Washington hosts workshops highlighting the seasonal climate forecast and water resource outlook for the Pacific Northwest (PNW) for the upcoming water year.

The information presented at these meetings provides public and private resource managers the opportunity to consider how projected seasonal streamflow levels may affect operational decisions in the Pacific Northwest.

The meetings also provide the opportunity to learn about new water resource forecasting techniques and tools.

General Meeting Information

The Climate Impacts Group's (CIG's) fall forecast meeting provided an opportunity to hear how forecasted climate conditions for winter 2009-2010 may affect regional climate and streamflow conditions in the Columbia and Snake River Basins in summer 2010. The meeting also provided a forum for sharing the latest research on climate impacts and climate forecasting in the Pacific Northwest (PNW). This year's meeting was hosted at the IDWR and co-sponsored by the University of Idaho.

Meeting participants

A few of the universities and agencies represented at this year's fall forecast meeting in Boise, ID are the following:

• University of Idaho, Boise State and Idaho State Universities
• USACE, USDA, US Fish and Wildlife, USFS
• NRCS Snow Survey, NWS, NOAA, NDMC
• Trout Unlimited, Idaho Rivers United, Idaho Wildlife Federation
• Bureaus of Reclamation, Land Management and Homland Security
• IDWR, Idaho Department of Fish and Wildlife, Idaho Ground Water Appropriators
• Clear Springs Food
• Idaho Power, Idaho Water Resources Research Instituet, Idaho Water Policy Group

Agenda and Presentations

8:30-9:00	** Registration **
9:00-9:10	Welcome and introductions – Hal Anderson, IDWR
9:10-9:40	Pacific Northwest winter 2008-09 climate recap and outlook for 2009-10 - John Abatzoglou, University of Idaho
9:40-10:05	The 2009 water supply summary - Liz Cresto, IDWR
10:05-10:35	Review of 2009 streamflow forecasts & Snow Advisory Team information - Ron Abramovich, USDA
10:45-11:00	** Break **
11:00-11:30	Seasonal outlooks for hydrology and water resources in the Columbia and Snake River basins - Francisco Munoz-Arriola, UW
11:30-12:00	Seasonal volume forecasts using Ensemble Streamflow Prediction for the 2010 water year - Stephen King, NWS River Forecast Center
12:00-12:15	Drought monitoring: Challenges in the western US - Brian Fuchs, NDMC
12:15-1:30	Lunch
1:00-2:30	Overview of the NFS EPSCoR "Water Resources in a Changing Climate" - Von Walden, University of Idaho
1:00-1:20	Progress in downscaling climate change scenarios for Idaho (EPSCoR) - Brandon Moore, University of Idaho
1:20-1:40	Progress in hydroclimatology research (EPSCoR) - Venkat Sridhar, Boise State
1:40-2:00	Progress in ecological research (EPSCoR) - Colden Baxter, Idaho State
2:00-2:20	Progress in economics and policy research (EPSCoR) - Siân Mooney, Boise State
2:30-2:45	**Break**
2:45-3:15	Climatic indices: Predictors of Idaho's snowfall - Mel Kunkel, Boise State
3:15-3:40	Adaptation: Moving water between users and uses - Richard Slaughter and Don Reading, CIG
3:40-4:00	Preliminary tree-ring reconstructions of stream flow in the Pacific Northwest: CIG NOAA SARP project update – Jeremy Littell, CIG
3:40-4:00	The Columbia Basin Climate Change Scenarios Project - Alan Hamlet, CIG
3:40-4:00	Update on the Idaho Comprehensive Aquifer Management and Planning Program - Helen Harrington, IDWR
4:00-4:15	Meeting wrap-up – Alan Hamlet, CIG

Other Climate Meetings of Interest

Workshop on Scenarios of Future Climate - October 28-29, Portland, OR

The Climate Impacts Group (CIG), the Oregon Climate Change Research Institute (OCCRI) and the University of Idaho's Water Resources in a Changing Climate program (WRCC) team up to sponsor a workshop on future climate scenarios. This meeting is intended to enhance the understanding and application of future climate scenarios for researchers and agency managers.

Water and Land Use in the Pacific Northwest - November 4-6, 2009 (Stevenson, Washington)

Washington State University supports this conference on the complex interaction of water management and land use in the Pacific Northwest. The conference provides an opportunity to open discussion among planners, engineers and scientists about the sustainable development of these resources.

 

The Climate Impacts Group, University of Washington
Questions? Contact Ingrid M Tohver, 206-685-4068