Billion-Dollar Climate Disasters: Costs in Lives and Dollars at New High
"Fueled by climate change, extreme weather set records this year, causing close to $50 billion and the loss of at least 188 lives by early October."
"Fueled by climate change, extreme weather set records this year, causing close to $50 billion and the loss of at least 188 lives by early October."
"Snowstorms, holidays, and general inexperience in handling a pandemic response is to blame for a "lag" in the number of Americans so far vaccinated for the coronavirus, according to U.S. officials."
"In an effort to boost natural gas exports, the Trump administration has reversed longstanding federal policy and approved transport of gas by rail anywhere in the country. Opposition has come from Hollywood stars, state attorneys general and local residents who worry about the danger this poses. But plans are moving ahead for a New Jersey project that calls for one of the longest such transport routes in the country: 200 miles through densely populated areas of the East Coast."
"From record-breaking wildfires to devastating hurricanes, human-driven climate change keeps killing us."
"In Madagascar’s deep south, 1.35 million people, including 100,000 children, could fall victim to malnutrition this year, as the worst drought in a decade grips the region.
This remote region has witnessed 16 famines since 1896, eight of which occurred in the past four decades. Most were the direct result of rainfall deficits, but misguided or failed policies have deepened the distress.
This year, with crop failures, pandemic-related restrictions curbing access to markets, and sharp increases in prices of essentials, food has remained out of reach for thousands.
Preparations for the inevitable impacts of the climate crisis in the South, the country’s most vulnerable region, have been hit or miss. And one of the toughest challenges — preparing coastal communities for inevitable flooding from sea level rise — is just beginning. More on the region’s climate adaptation considerations in the final entry in our “Covering Your Climate: The South” special report. Plus, a backgrounder, additional tipsheets and a toolbox.
As global warming worsens, effects like extreme heat, drought, wildfires, coastal flooding and inland flooding will have an outsized impact in the Southern United States. The latest entry in our ongoing “Covering Your Climate: The South” special report looks at those effects. Plus, read an introductory overview and watch for additional entries on climate mitigation and adaptation in the South.
"For thousands of years, North American tribes carefully burned forests to manage the land. The future may lie in a return to that past."
"From wildfires in California and locust attacks in Ethiopia to job losses caused by pandemic lockdowns in Italy and Myanmar, climate change and COVID-19 disrupted food production and tipped millions more people into hunger in 2020."
The South is ground zero for the climate crisis in the United States, yet little is being done to prevent impacts or protect communities. Will the South tap its potential to be part of the solution? Our special report, “Covering Your Climate: The South,” helps reporters cover the region, starting with a backgrounder on climate concerns from Texas to Virginia.