Twentieth-Century Fluctuations and Trends in Temperature, Precipitation, and Mountain Snowpack in the Georgia Basin-Puget Sound Region

Climate and snow data for the United States and Canada are combined and used in this paper to describe climate trends in the ecologically- and economically-vital land areas of the estuaries of Georgia Basin and Puget Sound. The region’s annually averaged temperature increased 1.5 °C during the 20th century while precipitation was more variable. Consistent with the observed warming, significant declines in mountain snowpack (typically 30% since 1950) have been observed, especially in springtime and at lower elevations.