Climate change vulnerability in high mountain water supply watersheds in the southern region of Ecuador
Keywords:
vulnerabilidad al cambio climático, exposición climática, capacidad adaptativa, Andes.Abstract
In recent decades, a strong influence of anthropic activities on watersheds has been observed. The potential climate change impacts, due to extreme variations in temperature and precipitation, suppose an additional element that increases watersheds’ vulnerability and affects fundamental ecosystem services for the development of local communities. This study analyzes the degree of vulnerability of two high-mountain water-supplying watersheds. For this purpose, we considered the exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity. The vulnerability assessment showed that the watersheds El Carmen and Mónica in the Loja canton, could have moderate to high vulnerability under pessimistic scenarios (RCP 8.5). Regarding the adaptive capacity, El Carmen (Headwater) and Mónica have high levels of adaptive capacity. These results are related to the presence of conservation strategies in these watersheds and show the importance of implementing conservation and restoration actions at the landscape level, to allow the maintenance and recovery of the ecosystems for water provision. In this way, the quality and quantity of water could also be ensured for communities.Metrics
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