Dr. Kelsey Leonard, a Water Institute member, professor in the Faculty of Environment, and Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Waters, Climate, and Sustainability, served as sector co-chair and lead author of the Water Resources chapter in the recently released New York State Climate Impacts Assessment.
The report themed: Understanding and Preparing for Our Changing Climate, is a scientific investigation into how climate change is affecting the communities, ecosystems, infrastructure, and industries of the Empire State.
Photo: Dr. Kelsey Leonard, Water Institute member, professor, Faculty of Environment and Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Waters, Climate and Sustainability
The "Water Resources" chapter of the assessment highlights the critical importance of clean, abundant water for the state's residents, ecosystems, and economy. It emphasizes that climate change poses significant threats to both water quality and quantity, citing factors such as sea level rise leading to saltwater intrusion into drinking water supplies, increased precipitation causing polluted runoff, and higher temperatures promoting harmful algal blooms.
The chapter also underscores the vulnerability of New York's aging water infrastructure to these climate-induced stresses, noting that many systems were designed based on historical conditions and are ill-equipped to handle current and future challenges.
To address these issues, the chapter advocates for proactive adaptation and resilience strategies, including infrastructure upgrades, incorporation of climate considerations into design standards, and enhanced modeling of saltwater intrusion. It also highlights the need for equitable resource distribution and the inclusion of Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge in water management practices.
You can explore the full assessment here, it is also published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.