Climate change could dramatically reduce water flowing from the West’s headwaters

The small mountain streams that feed many of the West’s rivers may face a much drier future. A new study led by NAU researchers found that groundwater-fed streamflow, known as base flow, has been steadily declining across headwater watersheds in the western United States since 1950 and could decrease by 45% to 65% by the end of this century if current climate trends continue.