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Daniel Swain says climate change is responsible for roughly half of Southwest drought

Publication: Salon

UCLA Expert: Daniel Swain: Assistant Researcher and Climate Specialist, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability

Synopsis: As the Colorado River dries, megacities in the Southwest may eventually also dry up. The water crisis may even be worsened by the shrinking of Lake Powell.

UCLA News: Swain wrote that climate change can be blamed for up to 50% of the severity of the megadrought in the Southwest. He mainly attributed this to the rising temperatures themselves, as the increased heat causes the atmosphere to suck more water up and reduces the amount of mountain precipitation that falls as snow.

 

Read more at Salon.