Key Facts Of The Day 3/3

Storms and Flooding

• A pair of winter storms will have the potential to bring travel issues across parts of the central and eastern United States late this week and into the first full week of March.

  • Areas farther to the east, such as northern New York state and New England, will face wintry precipitation from Friday night to Saturday night as well.

  • The two storms will first bring weather changes to the western U.S. along with much-needed rain and mountain snow before they turn eastward late this week into early next week.

    • Increasing winds and showers will creep into the region late Thursday into Friday, creating slick roads for the last day of the work week.

    • In the mountains, inches of snow are possible, which will create some difficult driving conditions late Thursday through Sunday morning when a winter storm watch is in effect.

• Nearly one third of the hazardous chemical facilities in the United States are at risk from climate-driven floods, storms and wildfires.

  • They face damage from sea level rise, hurricane storm surge, wildfires or flooding from heavy rain.

  • Of the 3,219 facilities located in harm’s way, more than 2,400 of them are at high risk for flooding, according to flood maps produced by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

  • In some places the risk may be even higher than those maps suggest, because FEMA does not take into account long-term sea level rise or other types of climate-driven flooding.

  • Socially vulnerable people, including poor people, Indigenous people and Black people, are more likely to live near facilities that use hazardous chemicals.

Wildfires

• As of Friday, there are currently 6 large active wildfires that have burned 12,214 acres across CA, FL, MS, and OK. As of Friday, 7,087 wildfires have burned 149,774 acres across the country.

• The redesigned NOAA satellite, which was launched on Tuesday, aims to improve wildfire and flood forecasting.

  • Besides observing conditions here on Earth, the satellites also monitor solar flares and the resulting space weather.

• Dry conditions leading to wildfires in Southeast Texas.

• As of Wednesday, a fast-moving wildfire grew to 500 acres in the Cleveland National Forest in California.

  • Nearly 100 personnel were fighting the blaze in steep terrain.

Extreme Heat

• Water availability and quality, as well as decreased groundwater retention, are the most drastic impacts climate change has had on Northern Arizona tribes.

  • As wells and springs dry up on the Navajo Nation, people have to drive longer distances to access water for themselves and their livestock.

  • Some families are selling off their cattle because they cannot afford to pay for the gasoline for their vehicles or they don’t even have gasoline or a big truck.

  • Important food plants like piñon pines are dying off, replaced by invasive species that don’t need as much water.

  • Seasonal changes are taking a toll on food security on the Navajo Nation and other tribal communities.

• The IPCC report noted for the first time that historic colonialism and governance models have contributed to unsustainable ocean and land use, inequity and marginalization of vulnerable communities such as Indigenous peoples.

  • It also said including Indigenous peoples and other local communities would be integral to successful adaptation in forested areas and other parts of the world.

• As the 2023 farm bill looms, the federal crop insurance program, first created in the 1930s, could be forced to adjust to a world with more extreme weather.

  • The risks of flood, drought and other weather disasters will continue to change as the climate warms all over the country.

  • In California’s Central Valley, the USDA projects that crop insurance payments due to excess moisture will outstrip those for drought — a pattern that could be repeated in the Pacific Northwest.

  • Crop insurance is under pressure to adjust to climate change, such as by offering farmers stronger incentives to plant cover crops or cut down on greenhouse gas emissions.

New Reports And Data

• A February 2022 study found that nearly one third of the hazardous chemical facilities in the United States are at risk from climate-driven floods, storms and wildfires.

• A February 2022 study found that the warming climate negatively impacts certain types of lakes more than others in the Acadia national park, which could affect future ecosystem recovery.

• A February 2022 study found that corals that underwent a stressful temperature treatment in the laboratory for 90 days were more tolerant to increased water temperatures.