Climate change in Wisconsin

Climate change in Wisconsin encompasses the effects of climate change attributed to man-made increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide, in the U.S. state of Wisconsin including the environmental, economic, and social impacts.

According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, "Wisconsin's climate is changing. In the past century, most of the state has warmed about two degrees (F). Heavy rainstorms are becoming more frequent, and ice cover on the Great Lakes is forming later or melting sooner. In the coming decades, the state will have more extremely hot days, which may harm public health in urban areas and corn harvests in rural areas".

As a result of the climate crisis, Wisconsin will become warmer and wetter in the future.

Flooding is projected to become more common in Wisconsin as the climate changes. In most of the Midwest, average annual precipitation has increased by 5 to 10% during the previous half-century. However, rainfall has increased by nearly 35% on the four wettest days of the year. Spring rainfall and yearly precipitation are predicted to rise during the next century, and violent rainstorms are anticipated to worsen. Each of these conditions will exacerbate the likelihood of flooding.

Flooding in Wisconsin can be very dangerous, in addition to the destruction of property, floods can also threaten the health of living beings. Hazardous chemicals can get into the water supply during a flood and therefore, expose living beings to different water-borne diseases. Along with the increased precipitation and flooding, there will be more frequent and severe storms across the state of Wisconsin. These storms will bring more rain in shorted periods of time not to mention an increase in tornadoes.

"Changing the climate is likely to shift the ranges of plants and animals. For example, rising temperatures could change the composition of Wisconsin’s forests. As the climate warms, the populations of paper birch, quaking aspen, balsam fir, and black spruce may decline in the North Woods, while oak, hickory, and pine trees may become more numerous. Climate change will also affect habitat for animals such as fish. Rising water temperatures will increase the available habitat for warmwater fish such as bass, while shrinking the available habitat for coldwater fish such as trout. Declining ice cover and increasingly severe storms would harm fish habitat through erosion and flooding". Climate change is also reportedly causing mercury levels to fluctuate in fish caught in Wisconsin lakes, leading to increasingly unsafe levels of mercury.

"Warming could also harm ecosystems by changing the timing of natural processes such as migration, reproduction, and flower blooming. Migratory birds are arriving in the Midwest earlier in spring today than 40 years ago. Along with range shifts, changes in timing can disrupt the intricate web of relationships between animals and their food sources and between plants and pollinators. Because not all species adjust to climate change in the same way, the food that one species eats may no longer be available when that species needs it (for example, when migrating birds arrive). Some types of animals may no longer be able to find enough food".

"Changing the climate is also likely to harm water quality in Lake Michigan. Warmer water tends to cause more algal blooms, which can be unsightly, harm fish, and degrade water quality. Severe storms also increase the amount of pollutants that run off from land to water, so the risk of algal blooms will be greater if storms become more severe. Increasingly severe rainstorms could also cause sewers to overflow into the lake more often, threatening beach safety and drinking water supplies. One advantage of climate change is that warmer winters reduce the number of days that ice prevents navigation. Between 1994 and 2011, the decline in ice cover lengthened the shipping season on the Great Lakes by eight days. The lakes are likely to warm another 3° to 7°F in the next 70 years, which will further extend the shipping season".