Geographia Polonica (2022) vol. 95, iss. 1

Changes in specific runoff in river catchments of Western Pomerania versus climate change

Małgorzata Świątek, Szymon Walczakiewicz

Geographia Polonica (2022) vol. 95, iss. 1, pp. 25-52 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/GPol.0226

Abstract

This paper examines specific runoffs in the catchments of the rivers Ina, Rega, Parsęta, Radew and Wieprza in the hydrological years 1981 through 2019. The magnitude of specific runoff is an indirect measure of water resources in a given region. Except for the Radew catchment, mean annual specific runoffs have diminished in all the analyzed catchments through the study period. In some or all of the catchments, runoffs from April through July have also diminished. The largest changes have been observed for June in the In a and Parsętacatchments. These changes are basically due to the increase in air temperature.

Keywords: Pomeranian Lake District, Southern Baltic coastlands, temporal trends in river runoff, climate change effects, water resource depletion

Małgorzata Świątek [malgorzata.swiatek@usz.edu.pl], Institute of Marine and Environmental Sciences University of Szczecin, ul. Mickiewicza 16, 70-383 Szczecin: Poland
Szymon Walczakiewicz, Institute of Marine and Environmental Sciences University of Szczecin, ul. Mickiewicza 16, 70-383 Szczecin: Poland