On future water resources in Switzerland

Projektleitung

Tobias Wechsler

Stellvertretung

Massimiliano Zappa

From snow-covered peaks to urban heat islands, this gradient, in its most concentrated form, is the essence of Alpine regions; it spans not only diverse ecosystems, but also diverse demands on water resources. Continuing climate change modifies the water supply and accentuates the pressure from competing water uses. In my PhD I focus on anthropogenic impacts of both hydropower and lake regulation. Ideally, a common Water resources management is agreed upon with an annual pattern that both corresponds to natural fluctuations and respects the different needs of the lake ecosystem, its immediate environment and upstream and downstream interests, such as fishery, shipping, energy production, nature conservation and the mitigation of high and low extremes. Surprisingly, a key question that remains open to date is how to incorporate these anthropogenic effects into a hydrological model? To estimate future hydrological developments on lakes and downstream rivers, it is important to use models