So…the Interior No Longer Cares About Climate Change? – “A leaked five-year strategic plan has zero mention of “climate change” or “diversity,” marking a major pivot away from its predecessor.” Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Climate Change
Climate Change: Information on Potential Economic Effects Could Help Guide Federal Efforts to Reduce Fiscal Exposure
Climate Change: Information on Potential Economic Effects Could Help Guide Federal Efforts to Reduce Fiscal Exposure, GAO-17-720: Published: Sep 28, 2017. Publicly Released: Oct 24, 2017. “Climate-related impacts, such as coastal property damage, have already cost the federal government billions of dollars, and these costs will likely rise in the future. We found that information… Continue Reading
Zillow – Climate Change and Homes: Who Would Lose the Most to a Rising Tide?
From an article by Lauren Bretz, October 18, 2017: One-third (32 percent) of underwater homes would be valued in the bottom third nationally, meaning $123 billion in losses. Two in five (39 percent) underwater homes would be valued in the top third nationally, translating to $597 billion in lost high-end real estate. In rural and… Continue Reading
U.S. Winter Outlook: NOAA forecasters predict cooler, wetter North and warmer, drier South
“Forecasters at NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center released the U.S. Winter Outlook today, with La Nina potentially emerging for the second year in a row as the biggest wildcard in how this year’s winter will shape up. La Nina has a 55- to 65-percent chance of developing before winter sets in. NOAA produces seasonal outlooks to… Continue Reading
NOAA, NASA team up again to investigate the atmosphere over Antarctica
NOAA: “Thirty years after NASA and NOAA launched a groundbreaking airborne campaign to study the Antarctic ozone hole, the two federal science agencies have once again joined forces over the world’s highest, driest and coldest continent to sniff out the secrets of the atmosphere. On Oct. 14, NASA’s heavily instrumented DC-8 flew over Antarctica as… Continue Reading
Outside – Joel Clement on Why He Quit the Dept. of the Interior
“The longtime DOI employee says he was forced out because he spoke up about the risk climate change poses to Alaskans. We caught up with him to talk the state of the Interior, how his colleagues are faring…” “…Until June 2017, Clement was in charge of the Office of Policy Analysis, where he worked primarily… Continue Reading
Electric Utility Generating Units: Repealing the Clean Power Plan
EPA: Electric Utility Generating Units: Repealing the Clean Power Plan Rule Summary Rule History Additional Resources Rule Summary – The Clean Power Plan established emission guidelines for states to follow in limiting carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from existing power plants. EPA is proposing to repeal the CPP and rescind the accompanying legal memorandum. Rule History… Continue Reading
Wildfire Suppression Spending: Background, Issues, and Legislation in the 115th Congress
CRS report via FAS – Wildfire Suppression Spending: Background, Issues, and Legislation in the 115th Congress, October 5, 2017 “Congress has directed that the federal government is responsible for managing wildfires that begin on federal lands, such as national forests or national parks. States are responsible for managing wildfires that originate on all other lands.… Continue Reading
Science News and Information Today
“At a time when scientific information is increasingly at the center of public divides, most Americans say they get science news no more than a couple of times per month, and when they do, most say it is by happenstance rather than intentionally, according to a new study by Pew Research Center. Overall, about a… Continue Reading
Boosting Humanitarian Response to Hurricanes
Center for Data Innovation – “The Humanitarian Data Exchange (HDX), an open data platform for humanitarian response efforts run by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, has published 63 datasets and counting of administrative, geospatial, weather, and satellite information related to Hurricane Irma. The datasets include satellite imagery of potential building… Continue Reading
Socrata launches Find Shelter application for victims of disasters
GCN: “…The Federal Emergency Management Agency puts out information on hurricane shelters every 20 minutes during natural disasters through its application programming interface. Socrata decided during Hurricane Irma to input the information into its geographic information system for a new web-based platform called Find Shelter. This week, capabilities were added to the platform to include… Continue Reading
CRS Reports – Responding to Major Disaster and Considerations Related to Hurricanes Harvey and Irma
Congressional Primer on Responding to Major Disasters and Emergencies, updated September 8, 2017 – “While the disaster response and recovery process is fundamentally a relationship between the federal government and the requesting state or tribal government, there are roles for congressional offices. For instance, congressional offices may help provide information to survivors on available federal… Continue Reading
