Description

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Human beings and industrial-based society are changing the composition of our planet's atmosphere and causing it to warm at an unnatural and oftentimes astonishing rate. Much of that warmth is being absorbed by water which is causing an acceleration in the rate and manner in which water moves through the global hydrological cycle. A warmer atmosphere carries more water vapor which means as temperatures continue to rise storms will be more intense, last longer and cause more damage to our towns, cities and vital infrastructure.

On the other side of the hydro-climate coin, we can also expect deeper, more persistent and damaging droughts throughout the world resulting in dramatic losses, difficult economic outcomes and fundamental alterations to landscape.

This highly considered, accessible and readable book explains how changes in the water cycle have already begun to affect how we think about and value water security and climate stability and what we can do to ensure a sustainable future for our children and grandchildren.

About the Author

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Robert William Sandford is the EPCOR Chair of the Canadian Partnership Initiative in support of United Nations Water for Life Decade and an associate of the Centre for Hydrology, which is part of the Global Water Institute at the University of Saskatchewan. He is also a member of Canada's Forum for Leadership on Water; serves as water governance adviser and senior policy author for Simon Fraser University's Adaptation to Climate Change Team; and has been senior water policy adviser for the Interaction Council, a global public policy forum composed of more than thirty former heads of state. He is the author or co-author of numerous books on water issues, including The Columbia River Treaty: A Primer (RMB, 2014), Flood Forecast: Climate Risk and Resiliency in Canada (RMB, 2014), Saving Lake Winnipeg (RMB, 2013), Cold Matters: The State and Fate of Canada's Fresh Water (RMB, 2012), Ethical Water: Learning to Value What Matters Most (RMB, 2011) and Restoring the Flow: Confronting the World's Water Woes (RMB, 2011). He lives in Canmore, Alberta, Canada.