GrainsWest Tech 2020

Tech 2020 grainswest.com 43 ONCE AND FUTURE CLIMATE Alberta Climate Records website illuminates trends It’s important to distinguish between weather and climate according to Stefan Kienzle, University of Lethbridge researcher and geography professor. While weather is the sum of factors such as wind, temperature and cloudiness observable right now, climate is defined as the 30-year average of weather observations. These three-decade periods are described as a “climate normals.” Kienzle and his research colleagues recently launched an updated version of the Alberta Climate Records website built on a massive 68-year Government of Canada weather dataset encompassing 1950 through 2017. To create climate projections for future normals, he ran this data through three modelling systems proven reliable for use in Alberta. Kienzle collaborated with Christine Clark, the university’s assistant professor of new media, to create the user-friendly site. Selecting 10-kilometre-square sections of the province, users can find 55 historical climate indices such as mean seasonal temperatures, first and last frost days, annual precipitation and growing season length. The site also features future average predictions out to 2070 for these categories. In his analysis, Kienzle found very significant trends that are of interest to farmers. He was most surprised by the emerging variability in climate patterns. “We have an increase in heatwaves, which of course we expect with climate change,” he said. “But we also have an increase in cold waves. A good example was last September when this horrible snowstorm in southern Alberta had major impacts on the harvest.” As well, extremes of hot and cold increasingly put stress on crops and livestock and miniature droughts that increase evaporation in summer alternate with bigger downpours. “Those are unfortunately things we have to brace for,” said Kienzle. On the upside, the length of the growing season has increased to between three and five weeks longer than it was in 1950. “Does this maybe produce new opportunities to grow other varieties of crops?” said Kienzle. For more information, visit albertaclimaterecords.com. Photo:Courtesyof StefanKienzle