Investigating impacts of climate change in river Klarälven, Värmland
With its 460 kilometres, central location, and powerfulness the river Klarälven is of great significance for many stakeholders in Värmland county. While being of great value the river also offers challenges regarding flood risk, erosion, and landslides. Measures taken to minimize the rivers impact on surrounding environment and infrastructure must also contemplate other aspects such as biodiversity, hydropower production and cultural heritage, making this a complex and important issue.
During the case study, three workshops have been carried out, involving stakeholders on both local and national level. At the first workshop stakeholders jointly described different scenarios of weather and its consequence for each sector.
- By the results we could determine what kind of facts and studies about the water flow in river Klarälven that we were missing and could task SMHI (Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute) to model, says Karin.
After the workshop SMHI was assigned to conduct a flow modelling for the river, depicting different types of flows in the future and their effects on sediment transport and stakeholders along the River Klarälven.
- The result from the flow modelling gave us important input to how future flows might occur, but it also gave us another key outcome; what we don’t know about the river and which research we are missing today, says Karin.
Formulating a vision of the future
At the second workshop stakeholders formulated goals for each area of interest to create a vision for the future in the Klarälven area. - While doing this many of the participants became increasingly aware of the complicity of a holistic perspective and that it’s easy to agree on overall descriptions like ‘sustainable’ but gets complicated when trying to be more specific, says Karin.
Therefore, each goal was formulated in an overall perspective. The visions were then used in the third workshop to back cast and evaluate different measures by working two real cases. By using two real cases, one upstream and one downstream, it was possible to compare potential measures with the visions and estimate the possible effects on different sectors. Something that also showed the complexity of this issue and need to work with a whole system perspective.
- Coming up with ideas for measures was the easy part, but when contemplating how this would affect not only one but two or more of our sectoral visions it got more detailed and the need to use a holistic perspective became evident, says Karin about the third workshop. Which, like the others, were held online due to corona pandemic and restrictions.
- Doing the workshops online had both positive and negative aspects, the positive was that many stakeholders could participate despite geographical distance, the negative is of course that online often gets less dynamic than meeting in person when there is little talks in between sessions and personal meetings makes it easier to have discussions and build relations, says Karin.
Knowing the river and each other
As the case study ends there is several important findings and experiences that will be of use when working with climate adaptation measures in the future. Not least the need and importance of a whole system approach where stakeholders are working together and considering the different sectors and their needs.
- It’s been very instructive to participate in discussions and hear other perspectives and insights than your own, I have gained better understanding for which other aspects there is to consider at climate adaption measures. I also realize what an advantage it would be and at the same time, what challenges that might occur when many stakeholders work together to find the best possible solutions, says Hjördis Löfroth from Swedish Geotechnical Institute, one of the key stakeholders
Research and workshops have also contributed to gaining more knowledge about the river and also insights on what kind of research that is missing. - We have gained important knowledge to be used in the coming work with climate adaption in the river. We now know more about the river and we also know more about what we don’t know, giving us a good starting point for future work, says Karin.
With its 460 kilometres, central location, and powerfulness the river Klarälven is of great significance for many stakeholders in Värmland county. While being of great value the river also offers challenges regarding flood risk, erosion, and landslides. Measures taken to minimize the rivers impact on surrounding environment and infrastructure must also contemplate other aspects such as biodiversity, hydropower production and cultural heritage, making this a complex and important issue.