Assessment of climate change effects on water and carbon cycling and habitat change in the Yukon River Basin: Piloting a National Strategy (Invited)

Recent hydrologic investigations conducted in the Yukon River Basin indicate shifts in the timing and source of water and carbon exports by the Yukon River to the Bering Sea. Much of the observed change can be attributed to permafrost thaw and increased infiltration; factors that also affect surface water extent and chemistry, vegetation and habitat composition and condition, biogeochemical cycling, and energy balance. Consequently, USGS has initiated a comprehensive interdisciplinary investigation of processes controlling water and carbon cycling and export in the Yukon Flats region of interior Alaska, an important area for waterfowl and wildlife that is considered to be particularly prone to permafrost thaw and concomitant changes in water availability and distribution. The investigation integrates biological, chemical, geological, hydrological, meteorological, modeling and remote sensing studies by USGS, USFWS, universities and others, in collaboration with Alaska native volunteers, to determine climate change effects on water and carbon cycling of the region. Results of the intensive field and modeling studies will have transfer value to other similar regions of the Yukon Basin and other subarctic regions and will provide a foundation for scaling to a larger basin wide assessment. The Yukon River Basin initiative is the pilot of a national program for establishing climate related collaborative observation, research, and decision support strategies by the Department of Interior.