Climate change is an important and well-studied phenomenon, and historical data tracking changes in
weather and climate are readily available. Climate change could induce shifts in mean values for weather
variables and/or cause new patterns in climate variability, both of which could cause impacts on water
demands, supplies, and source water quality. Water suppliers are beginning to consider the potential
impacts of climate change on future water supplies. However, the focus of past work has been on water
quantity impacts (e.g., flooding and droughts) rather than on changes in water quality. This paper focuses
on how climate change could affect source water quality parameters that influence taste and odors.
Examples from the author's work with Lake Cachuma, near Goleta, California, are discussed. That
study indicated that under warming climate scenarios, the likelihood of conditions related to taste and
odor events during the dry season would increase. Under some circumstances, dry season water quality,
related to taste and odor, could be forecast from wet season hydroclimate (air temperature related
parameters) using probability relationships. Includes 2 references, tables, figure.