Figure 3. Sea level GRD fingerprints over various time periods
showing the relative sea level change as a result of reservoir
construction including seepage. In each plot, the color bar is scaled to
the maximum sea level fall. (a) Combined fingerprint of all
reservoirs in the GRanD database (1900 – 2011), including seepage.
(b) Fingerprint of all water impounded in the decade 1970
– 1979, a period of prolific dam construction. (c) Fingerprint
of all water impounded during the year 1955.
The GRD fingerprints for the future construction from the database of
Zarfl et al . (2015) are shown in Fig. 4. The global signal (Fig.
4a) shows a markedly different geographic distribution than the GRanD
database (Fig. 3a), notably in northern South America and Southeast
Asia.