| In Hokkaido and other cold、 snowy regions、 snowmelt is an important source of water. The accumulation of snow in winter greatly affects the amount of snowmelt runoff in spring、 and is also an important factor in developing a safe river channel plan in terms of flood control. The impact of global warming has recently been considered as a factor behind changes in winter weather trends、 and it is particularly likely that the recent changes in temperature and snowfall patterns are a result of this phenomenon. This paper on the trends of snow season weather in Hokkaido as summarized using weather maps and data from the prefecture’s weather stations and the Automated Meteorological Data Acquisition System (AMeDAS) from the 1960s to recent years (as of 2006). |
