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Page 6 <br /> <br /> <br />Table 2. Minnesota Climate Explorer Historic Data, Mississippi River – St. Cloud <br />Watershed <br />Annual Mean Trend <br />Precipitation 27.37" +0.43" per decade <br />Minimum Temperature 31.91°F +0.32°F per decade <br />Average Temperature 42.10°F +0.26°F per decade <br />Maximum Temperature 52.28°F +0.21°F per decade <br />1Historic (1895 to 2024) <br /> <br />Beyond the historical trends, projected future data for the Mississippi River watershed was also <br />evaluated using the MnDNR’s Minnesota Climate Explorer tool. The mid-century (2040-2059) <br />and late-century (2080-2099) projections were assessed based on the project's life span; see <br />Table 3 below. The late-century projection has two different modeled scenarios: an intermediary <br />where emissions decline after peaking in 2040 and an extreme where emissions continue rising <br />through the 21st century. The four metrics (minimum, average, and maximum temperature, and <br />precipitation) were evaluated by eight government institutions, laboratories, and alliances. The <br />mean from the eight models is shown below with the various projections and scenarios. Graphs <br />showing all eight models and both scenarios are included in Appendix B. <br /> <br />Table 3. Minnesota Climate Explorer Projected (Future) Data, Mississippi River - St. Cloud <br />Watershed <br /> <br />Comparing the historical and projected values, the average annual precipitation and average <br />annual temperature are expected to rise within Minnesota and the Mississippi River – St. Cloud <br />Watershed as well. <br /> <br />b) For each Resource Category in the table below: Describe how the project’s proposed <br />activities and how the project’s design will interact with those climate trends. Describe <br />proposed adaptations to address the project effects identified. <br /> <br />Mid-Century <br />(2040-2059) <br />Late-Century (2080-2099) <br />Intermediate Scenario <br />Late-Century (2080- <br />2099) Extreme Scenario <br />Annual <br />Lower <br />Range Mean Upper <br />Range <br />Lower <br />Range Mean Upper <br />Range <br />Lower <br />Range Mean Upper <br />Range <br />Precipitation <br />(in.) 16.52 30.51 59.99 16.12 31.56 68.04 16.48 33.84 73.74 <br />Minimum <br />Temperature <br />(°F) <br />36.26 40.45 44.85 39.45 43.25 46.96 44.43 47.53 50.59 <br />Average <br />Temperature <br />(°F) <br />43.75 47.20 51.21 45.78 49.62 53.38 50.25 53.48 56.72 <br />Maximum <br />Temperature <br />(°F) <br />50.96 54.10 57.96 52.16 56.24 60.24 56.26 59.86 63.41 <br />1 Based on the model mean