Global warming: Desert dust storms to get worse

Posted on February 27, 2011 by Bob Berwyn

U.S. Geological Survey, UCLA study shows loss of vegetation in the Southwest will lead to more frequent and intense dust storms

Desert dust shows up in the snowpack at Loveland Pass, Colorado.

Dust storms like this one captured by a NASA satellite are predicted to get worse as global warming kills desert vegetation.

By Summit Voice

SUMMIT COUNTY — Desert dust blowing from the Southwest into the Rockies has been implicated in everything from earlier snowmelt and air quality violations to causing avalanches.

A new study shows  the storms more frequent and intense as global warming kills desert vegetation.

A research team from the U.S. Geological Survey and UCLA looked at climate, vegetation and soil measurements collected over a 20-year period in Arches and Canyonlands National Parks in southeastern Utah. Long-term data indicated that perennial vegetation in grasslands and some shrublands declined with temperature increases. The study then used these soil and vegetation measurements in a model to project future wind erosion. (more…)

Filed under: air quality, climate and weather, Colorado, Environment, global warming, Summit County news | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

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