Changes in Climate, Snow and Water Resources in the Spanish Pyrenees: Observations and Projections in a Warming Climate

Abstract

The Pyrenees constitute one of the greatest sources of freshwater in the Spanish territory, but, like many other mountain systems in the world, they are subject to environmental changes that ultimately affect the availability of water resources in areas downstream. In this study, we offer an assessment of hydrological changes in the Pyrenees, from a warming climate perspective, including climate and snow cover trends, changes in the timing of river flows, and future changes under climate change scenarios. Overall, we found that increasing temperatures are responsible for a lesser accumulation of snow over time, although with spatial differences. As a consequence, the occurrence of spring flows (that largely depend on snowmelt) on the studied rivers, has shifted earlier by approximately one month (from mid-June to mid-May). Future projections, which are made by coupling regional climate models outputs and hydrological modelling, indicate that observed decrease in snow accumulation and shifts in streamflow timing will exacerbate in a warmer short-term future (2050). The amount of water yields will not change significantly, only will suffer a slight decrease due to increased evapotranspiration. Observed and projected hydrological changes must be considered by water managers and environmental technicians if a sustainable management of the water resource and the mountain territory is to be done.