Environment of Wyoming

Wyoming the Continental Divide, and its abrupt topographic relief includes alternating basins and mountain ranges. Major mountain ranges include the Beartooth, Gros Ventre, Teton, Wind River, Bighorn, Sierra Madre, and Medicine Bow. Internal basins and eastern plains are rolling to flat, and in the east are the Great Plain.

Typical vegetation includes sagebrush, greasewood, and saltbush shrubs in the intermountain basins, grasses on the Great Plains, juniper and mountain mahogany in the foothills, and forest and alpine meadows in the mountains.

Climate change

Over the last century, the average temperature in Laramie, Wyoming, has increased Fdeg|1.5, and precipitation has decreased by up to 20% in many parts of the state. These past trends mayor may not continue into the future.

Over the next century, climate in Wyoming may change even more. For example, based on projections made by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and results from the United Kingdom Hadley Centre’s climate model (HadCM2), a model that accounts for both greenhouse gases and aerosols, by 2100 temperatures in Wyoming could increase by 4°F in springand fall (with a range of 2-7°F), 5°F in summer (with a range of 2- 8°F), and 6°F in winter (with a range of 3-11°F). Precipitation is estimated to decrease slightly in summer (with a range of 0-10%), increase by 10% in spring and fall (with a range of 5-20%), and increase by 30% in winter (with a range of 10-50%). Other climate models may show different results, especially regarding estimated changes in precipitation. The impacts described in the sectionsthat follow take into account estimates from different models. The amount of precipitation on extreme wet or snowy days in winter is likely to increase. The frequency of extreme hot days in summer would increase because of the general warming trend. It is not clear how the severity of storms might be affected, although an increase in the frequency and intensity of winter storms is possible.

External links

* [http://deq.state.wy.us/ Department of Environmental Quality] (State of Wyoming).
* [http://www.wrapair.org/ Western Regional Air Partnership]
* [http://www.wyomingoutdoorcouncil.org/ Wyoming Outdoor Council]
* [http://www.uwyo.edu/enr/ Environment and Natural Resources Program ] (University of Wyoming)