As the impacts of climate change amplify, understanding the consequences for wetlands will be critical for their sustainable management and conservation, particularly in arid regions such as the Columbia Plateau. The depressional wetlands in this region (wetlands located in topographic depressions where water can accumulate) are an important source of surface water during the summer months. However, their health depends directly on precipitation and evaporation, making them susceptible to changes in temperature and precipitation. Yet few tools for monitoring water movement patterns (hydrology) in and out of these landscapes currently exist, hindering efforts to model how they are changing.
This project provided data on wetland locations, historical hydrologic dynamics, and projected climate change impacts by analyzing flooding and drying patterns for thousands of wetlands in the Columbia Plateau from 1984 to 2011. The data describes the change between historical and future projected wetland patterns across the region. Researchers found that wetlands in the region will respond differently to projected changes in climate. Groundwater-driven wetlands, which tend to be more permanently flooded, may see increases in water levels and dry less frequently. Surface-water-driven wetlands, which flood seasonally, may see a decrease in surface-water levels, dry more frequently, and dry earlier in the season.
Understanding how changes in climate could impact depressional wetland dynamics is critical for sustainable management and conservation in dry areas like the Columbia Plateau. To ensure usability, researchers provided guidance on using the data to federal and state agencies, tribes, universities, and nonprofit organizations, such as Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge, Foster Creek Conservation District, and the Natural Resources Department of Yakama Nation. This information can help managers explore how management strategies may need to adapt, given the expected future changes in wetland hydrology in the region. Specific activities that could be informed by this data include the management of vegetation to increase water yield, fencing and grazing management around wetlands, and the management of wildlife that use wetlands.
