Beräkningar har gjorts för hur vattennivåer, tappningar, vattentemperatur och is beräknas förändras i Vänern fram till 2100 på grund av den globala uppvärmningen. De tydligaste förändringarna i Vänern och Göta älv i ett framtida klimat beräknas bli att: Det blir vanligare med låga nivåer i Vänern. Det blir vanligare med höga nivåer i Vänern. Det blir vanligare med låga tappningar i Göta älv. Det blir vanligare med höga tappningar i Göta älv. Det blir högre vattentemperaturer. Det blir kortare perioder med is. I denna rapport redovisas nya beräkningar för Vänerns nivåer som ersätter de tidigare beräkningarna från 2010 (Bergström m.fl. 2010).
Calculations have been made for how the water level, water release, water temperature and ice extent are expected to change in Lake Vättern up to the year 2100 due to global warming.The most noticeable effects of the future climate on Lake Vättern are expected to be:
With a warmer climate the evaporation is expected to increase, both from vegetation in the lake’s catchment area as well as directly from the surface of the lake. This means that the water level in Lake Vättern is expected to be lower in the future. Calculations show that the average water level in Lake Vättern is expected to drop by one to two decimetres by the end of the century, with about the same reduction for all seasons.The number of days per year where the water level is below 88.3 m is expected to increase from the present value of around 1.5 months to about 3 months by the middle of the century and 4-6 months by the end of the century. The highest levels, the calculated maximum water level, are expected to remain unchanged in the future.