%0 Journal Article
%T Statistical Analysis of Rainfall Trend for Volta Region in Ghana
%A M. Nyatuame
%A V. Owusu-Gyimah
%A F. Ampiaw
%J International Journal of Atmospheric Sciences
%D 2014
%I Hindawi Publishing Corporation
%R 10.1155/2014/203245
%X Climate change is global in nature, but potential changes are not expected to be globally uniform; rather, there may be dramatic regional differences. Considerable effort should be invested to understand climate change at the regional level. The study was conducted to establish the rainfall trends in Volta Region and also to provide the evidence of climate change by analyzing available rainfall record for 30-year period of 1981 to 2011. Records of monthly and yearly rainfall were obtained from the headquarters of Ghana Meteorological Department, Accra, for analysis. The region was grouped into three zones characteristic of the whole country, namely, coastal zone, middle zone, and northern zone, respectively. Graphs were constructed to illustrate the changing trends within the months and years of the zones. Statistical analysis (i.e., LSD, ANOVA) was performed to assess any significant difference among the three zones and within the months and years under study. Significant differences were observed among the three zones. Northern zone recorded the highest precipitation followed by the middle zone and lastly the coastal zone. However the rainfall trends within the aforementioned zones were oscillatory. The highest annual mean rainfall was 202.6£żmm and the lowest was 29.9£żmm. Linear regression analysis revealed upward and downward trend in the data in some months and years in the mentioned zones but statistically insignificant. 1. Introduction Water is one of our most valuable natural resources and vital to all forms of life. Water is also used for transportation, is source of power, and serves many other useful purposes for domestic consumption, agriculture, and industry. The main important source of water in any area is rain. The amount or availability of water for various purposes is very much depending upon the amount of precipitation in that particular area. Excess or extended absence of rainfall will cause flooding and drought, respectively. Adler et al. [1] stated that precipitation information is essential for understanding the hydrologic balance on a global scale and for understanding the complex interactions among the components within the hydrologic cycle. The availability of adequate freshwater of appropriate quality has become a limiting factor for development worldwide [2]. In arid and semiarid regions of the world, water scarcity and low per capita water allocation were always a dominant challenge. The situation has further exacerbated due to increase in population and the associated expansion of urbanization and economic activities, all of
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