Trends in precipitation in the Netherlands, 1906-2002
The amount of precipitation in the Netherlands has increased during the last century, mainly in the October-March period. In the Netherlands, the last five years in particular were very wet.
Last five years very wet
The average amount of precipitation in the Netherlands has increased during the last century, mainly in the winter (October-March). This development is in line with the rest of Northern Europe (KNMI, 2003). The last five years were very wet, varying from approximately 900 mm to more than 1100 mm precipitation a year. In the 1961-1990 period, 780 mm a year was normal. A definite trend of extreme precipitation in the Netherlands - more than 50 mm in one day - cannot yet be seen in the series of measurements from 1950 onwards (KNMI, 2003).
More precipitation caused by climate change?
The amount of precipitation depends on numerous factors, such as wind direction, temperature and air humidity. So the amount of precipitation varies considerably according to place and time. The amount of precipitation can increase with temperature, but it is also affected by other climatological factors such as changes in the prevailing wind direction. Climate predictions show an increase in average precipitation in Northern Europe and a fall in Southern Europe (Cubasch et al., 2001).
