Warmer climate makes Baltic more salty

Science has long believed that a warmer climate will increase river runoff to the Baltic Sea, thus making the inland sea less salty. However, a new extensive study from the University of Gothenburg reveals that the effect will probably be the opposite: climate change will reduce river runoff and increase salinity in the Baltic Sea.

“There could be major consequences for the Baltic’s sensitive ecosystem,” says researcher Daniel Hansson.

Researchers at the Department of Geosciences have been able to reconstruct the flow of freshwater to the Baltic Sea since the 16th century by analysing atmospheric observations from the past 500 years. The study, which has been published in the International Journal of Climatology, shows that in the past, warm periods have coincided with less freshwater in the Baltic Sea. If the climate becomes warmer in future, river runoff may also fall, leading to an increase in salinity.

Source: Warmer climate makes Baltic more salty – physorg

Date: 01 June, 2010