Water Issues in Nova Scotia: Climate Change

Global warming is causing more overall precipitation, but also hotter, drier and longer summer conditions in Nova Scotia. This environmental stress reduces moisture in the soils, displaces animals that prefer cool, wet habitat and changes the population structure of rivers, lakes and wetlands. Municipal water supplies, as well as ecosystem functions, will be affected by climate change. For example, as increased evaporation lowers water levels, the concentration of pollutants will increase, and critical species populations may decline. Lower water tables in areas adjacent to the ocean may result in influxes of saltwater affecting freshwater species and contaminating the groundwater on which local residents rely. Southern Nova Scotia, which is very dependent on groundwater for drinking water, and low-lying and adjacent to the Bay of Fundy, would be especially vulnerable.

For more information on how climate change will affect NS freshwater systems, check out the Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Program, 2007 report by the Natural Resources of Canada.