New Findings Show How Climate Change Is Influencing India’s Farmer Suicides
A suicide epidemic among India’s farmers has shaken the country and contributed to a doubling of the nation’s suicide rate since 1980. It’s a widespread and intensely personal issue, one that has been difficult to tease out the root source. Debt, mental health, lack of social services, weather vagaries and even media coverage have all been put for … Read More
These Are the Crazy Climate Records from 2016 You Haven’t Heard Much About
By now, we’ve all heard that 2016 was the hottest year on record, and that heat-trapping greenhouse gases hit their highest concentration ever, surpassing 400 parts per million for the first time in nearly 1 million years. But there are other climate change-related records that have flown more under the radar. Several of those records were… Read More
Climate Change Has Influenced Timing of Europe’s Floods
From the heavy rains that sent the Seine into the streets of Paris last year to a parade of storms that left southern England waterlogged during the winter of 2013-2014, there have been startling examples in recent years of the heavy toll that flooding can levy in both human and economic terms. Such events also lead to questions about the role clim… Read More
Court Scuttles Rule Cutting Potent Greenhouse Gas
One of the most powerful climate pollutants on earth, hydrofluorocarbons or HFCs, account for a small portion of U.S. climate pollution, but scientists say it’s important for countries to urgently cut them just because they’re so potent — and growing. A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the EPA cannot regulate HFCs under the Clean Air Act.… Read More
Disaster and Neglect in Louisiana
A year after the worst rainstorm in a rainy state’s history killed 13 and damaged nearly 100,000 homes, the federal government has provided less than half of what Louisiana says it needs to recover. Adding to the rebuilding woes, FEMA rejected a $16 million request to fund counseling services beyond Aug. 25, even as the state’s residents report … Read More
Massachusetts May Overlook Climate Impacts of Biofuels
Massachusetts is considering a plan that would classify wood pellets and other tree products as sources of renewable energy, allowing the logging industry to contribute to the state’s climate goals to cut greenhouse gas emissions. However, research shows that burning biomass to generate electricity can actually make climate change worse by … Read More
This is British Columbia’s Second-Worst Wildfire Season. It’s Far From Over
Poor air quality, blood-red sunsets and mountains swallowed by smoke are just a handful of the impacts of wildfires roaring in British Columbia. The fires kicked up in early July but have spread in recent days as hot, dry and windy weather has fanned the flames and sent smoke streaming across the border into Washington and Oregon. Wildfires have … Read More
Global Warming Is Fueling Arizona’s Monstrous Monsoons
Summer in Arizona and throughout the Southwest is monsoon season, which means a daily pattern of afternoon thunderstorms, flash floods, dramatic dust clouds and spectacular displays of lightning over the desert. As the climate changes, Arizona’s monsoon rainfall is becoming more intense even as daily average rainfall in parts of the state has … Read More
