- Research Title: Analysis of climate change impacts on streamflow in South African river catchments
- 1 Introduction
South Africa (RSA) is a water-scarce country with rainfall distributed unevenly in our landscape, inconveniently away from the centers of agriculture, mining and industry, and linked to seasonal cycles that steer us frequently from feast to famine, between floods and droughts (WWF, 2013).
Climate change is estimated to impact South Africa tremendously than countries in the north part of Africa and it will be noticed first through water impacts, reduction in streamflows (DEA, 2013).
- 2. Problem statement
Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa is largely dependent on local
hydrology and as such climate change impacts leading to reduced waterflow through river catchments pose significant threats to food production and food security. There is an urgent need to assess the current impacts of climate change on river catchments in South Africa which are believed to have reduced significantly in recent years.
- 3. Aim of this study project
The aim of the research project is to: Investigate and determine the Climate change impacts on streamflow in South African river catchments of the inland region.
1. 4. Objectives
- RO1) Determine the impact of climate on streamflow across selected river catchments using observational data from water gauges.
- RO2: Evaluate the impact of climate on streamflow from historical model simulations across the study site.
- RO2) Predict future climate change-induced changes to these streamflow under RCP4.5 and RCP 8.5 scenarios.
1.5. Recommendations and conclusion
We conclude that climate change is and will highly affect water demand on agricultural irrigation and through household garden watering.
Future work should address the development of low cost desalinization of sea water as a climate change adaptation strategy.
This study suggests policy actions should be taken to ensure sustainable water use and water conservation.
2. Global Perspectives on Trade and Sustainability