New parts of Ireland will become prone to flooding and existing flood prone areas will be affected more often as a result of climate change, the Royal Irish Academy has warned.
"Although we cannot say whether climate change is responsible for the heavy rainfall experienced this summer in Ireland and England, scientists predict we will increasingly see more heavy rainfall days in the future", the academy said in its latest scientific statement on global warming and water issues.
"In Ireland, winters will be on average wetter, summers drier. When showers occur, they are likely to be heavier, with a greater risk of local flooding", according to the fifth scientific statement of the academy's committee on climate change.
"There will be an increase in both the frequency and severity of future flooding. Heavy rainfall events will also increase the risk of landslide and soil erosion", it warns.
There could also be "groundwater deficits" in a year with below average rainfall. Rainfall and river flows are likely to become much more variable than at present.
"This will have major implications for water supply, irrigation, commercial and industrial development, electricity generation, human health and environmental conditions".
In order to reduce Ireland's vulnerability, the statement says there is a need to design new flood defences and improve existing defences to withstand more frequent floods, some of a larger magnitude, and to carry out more research in this area.
It would also be essential to ensure that our infrastructure and water supply resources are "sufficiently robust" to deal with future demands, and to use integrated planning to ensure sustainable growth without an associated decline in water quality in the country.
The Royal Irish Academy said that the Fourth Assessment Report from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which is being released on a phased basis this year, had "left us in no doubt about the threats posed by climate change".
