FOR RELEASE: March 9, 2007

 

For More Information:

Vicky Harris, Water Quality and Habitat Restoration Specialist, Wisconsin Sea Grant, (920) 465-2795
Stephen Wittman, Communications Coordinator, Wisconsin Sea Grant, (608) 263-5371

 

Experts to Discuss Local Stormwater Impacts of Climate Change

A free public presentation on “Climate Change Impacts on Stormwater” will be held at 4 p.m. Tuesday, March 13, in Phoenix Rooms A and B at the UW-Green Bay University Union. Parking is available at the MaryAnn Cofrin Visitor lot (http://www.uwgb.edu/maps/).

Global warming is an undeniable reality, according to the latest (2007) report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

What will a changing climate mean for our Great Lakes region? Many scientists expect more frequent intense rainfalls to eastern Wisconsin. These hard downpours put more demands on a community’s stormwater management system, and one clogged stormwater drain can quickly lead to a flooded street and property damage.

Thomas E. Croley II from the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory in Ann Arbor, Mich., will take a look at some future scenarios of climate effects on the Great Lakes using the latest climate models available. Ken Potter from the UW-Madison Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering will discuss several ways to manage stormwater in Wisconsin’s changing climate.

The presentations are the first in the seminar series “Climate Change in the Great Lakes Region.” Over the next several months, experts will speak at sites throughout Wisconsin about what is known about the effects of climate change on our region, what is predicted and what can be done to adapt. See www.seagrant.wisc.edu/climateChange for details and updates.

Croley and Potter’s presentations are being held in conjunction with the Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance Stormwater Conference, scheduled March 13-14 on the UW-Green Bay campus. While the public is encouraged to attend the free presentations, registration is required for the additional conference sessions.

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Conceived in 1966, Sea Grant is a national network of 30 university-based programs of research, outreach, and education for enhancing the practical use and conservation of coastal, ocean and Great Lakes resources to create a sustainable economy and environment. The National Sea Grant Network is a partnership of participating coastal states, private industry, and the National Sea Grant College Program, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce.

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all audio, images and video used with permission

last updated 09 March 2007 TD

http://www.seagrant.wisc.edu/communications/news_releases/2007/ClimateChange.html