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Cleveland, OH, USA Top Impact Other Impacts
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Lake-effect snowfall is a fact of life in Cleveland, OH, located on the southeastern shore of Lake Erie. Scientists expect extreme winter storms to become more frequent and more intense in the area over the next few decades as our climate changes.1 |
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Key Facts Global warming is causing an increase in extreme precipitation throughout the Midwest.7,8,9 If our heat-trapping emissions continue to rise at current rates, scientists project more intense storms, some of which can produce more snowfall during winter in Cleveland, even as the snowy ground cover season shortens due to a warming climate.9,10,15
Details Cleveland, the second-largest city in Ohio, sits on the southern shore of Lake Erie, the shallowest of the Great Lakes.2,3 Historically a manufacturing center, Cleveland remains a science and engineering hub, with a growing service sector that includes industries such as banking, health care, and insurance.4,5 The city is also home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.5,6 Global warming has brought more intense storms and more precipitation to Cleveland and other parts of the Midwest, where heavy downpours now occur about twice as often as they did a century ago.7,8 On average, the amount of precipitation that falls during the heaviest 1 percent of rainstorms and snowstorms in the United States has increased nearly 20 percent during the past 50 years—almost three times the rate of increase in total annual precipitation.9,10 The Midwest saw an even larger average increase of around 31 percent, surpassed only by the Northeast (at around 67 percent).9,10 Scientists attribute the overall rise in heavy precipitation to climate change that has already occurred over the past half-century.11 A phenomenon called lake-effect snow is spurring some of the higher winter precipitation in Cleveland—already among the snowiest places in North America.9 Such snow occurs when cold winds from the northwest flow over the relatively warmer Great Lakes, pick up moisture, and drop it as snow on the lakes' southern and eastern shores.9 The amount of snow that falls during a blizzard is a different measure than the area of ground covered by snow for more than 30 days—this measure has been decreasing in the northern hemisphere and is a clear indicator of climate change.10 Though it may seem counterintuitive, global warming has been contributing to an increase in lake-effect snow south and east of the Great Lakes for the past 60 years.10,12 That is because the less ice there is on the surface of a large lake, the more moisture can evaporate. And if the air is cold enough, that extra water vapor can fall as snow.13 Various pieces of evidence indicate that the Great Lakes are warming. For example, the ice season has been starting later and ending earlier since the 1850s.14 And rising air temperatures during the spring, summer, and autumn may be having more of an impact on water temperatures (setting the conditions for lake-effect snow) than winter air temperatures.15 Ice coverage on the Great Lakes has decreased as the climate has warmed, shrinking at a rate of 8.4 percent per decade from 1973 through 2008.13 This roughly 30 percent decline in ice coverage has created conditions conducive to heavier snowfalls and more extreme storms.10,16 What the Future HoldsScientists expect more intense storms to occur in the Midwest, and more precipitation to fall in winter and spring.9 According to climate models, lake-effect snowfall is likely to continue rising over the next few decades during periods when winter temperatures remain below freezing.10,15 More snowfall and extreme weather in Cleveland could wreak havoc on transportation and commerce throughout northeast Ohio, requiring more spending on snow removal, and making spring flooding more severe. Heavy lake-effect snows can benefit winter recreation, agriculture, and regional hydrology, but they can also endanger people's lives, damage property, disrupt air and surface transportation, and hurt farming, water supplies, and hydroelectric power.15 Later this century, lake-effect snow is likely to decline as temperatures continue rising, with more precipitation falling as rain.17 Endnotes
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Global Warming Effects Around the World
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