Key Facts Of The Day 5/25

Storms and Flooding

• On Tuesday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warned above-average Atlantic temperatures which are likely to cause another busy hurricane season, with 3 to 6 major hurricanes expected.
  • The agency predicts there’s a 65% chance of an “above-normal season,” with 14 to 21 named storms. 
  • Of those storms, 6 to 10 could become hurricanes, with 3 to 6 classified as major hurricanes with winds of 111 MPH or more.
  • There’s only a 25% chance that 2022 will be near normal and just a 10% chance that it will be below normal.
  • NOAA officials said the hurricane season will be affected by several climate factors, including the ongoing La Niña that’s likely to persist throughout the season, warmer-than-average sea temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea, and weaker tropical Atlantic trade winds.
• An E&E News investigation revealed systemic favoritism toward wealthy and white people in a federal program that lifts homes above rising floodwaters. 
  • In 12 of the 18 states, more than half of the FEMA elevation money has gone to communities that are overwhelmingly white or wealthy.
  • In four states — Kentucky, Massachusetts, Ohio, and West Virginia — more than 75% of the FEMA elevation money has gone to overwhelmingly white or wealthy communities.
  • Policies set by Congress, FEMA, and state officials over three decades have made it nearly impossible for people who are Black or Hispanic, or who have limited income, to get federal elevation money in most states.
    • Because the money is restricted to people who own homes and who in most cases can pay tens of thousands of dollars for costs not covered by FEMA, Black, and Hispanic people are penalized due to the nation’s huge racial and ethnic disparities in wealth and home ownership.

Wildfires

• As of Wednesday, there are currently 9 large active wildfires that have burned 570,817 across AZ, CO, NE, NM, and TX. As of Wednesday, 26,884 wildfires have burned 1,780,488 acres across the country.
• In Arizona, 1 fire has burned 4,000 acres as of Wednesday.
  • The Elgin Bridge Fire has burned 4,000 acres and is 15% contained as of Wednesday.
  • On Tuesday, Arizona’s six national forests and some local governments and land management agencies are implementing stricter campfire and smoking restrictions because of the heightened wildfire threat.
  • The forests’ heightened restrictions prohibit or impose limits on activities such as shooting, welding, using chain saws, running generators, and driving motor vehicles off roads.
• In Colorado, 1 fire has burned 721 acres as of Wednesday.
• In Nebraska, 1 fire has burned 4,192 acres as of Wednesday.
• In New Mexico, 5 fires have burned 550,944 acres as of Wednesday.
  • The Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire has burned 311,148 acres and is 42% contained as of Wednesday.
    • On Monday, nearly 3,000 firefighters in New Mexico kept the nation’s largest active wildfire from growing as they took advantage of cooler weather before the return of more dangerous conditions later in the week.
    • Flames have consumed more than 484 square miles of timber, grassland, and brush, and evacuations have been in place for weeks.
    • The Forest Service released a survey of vegetation and soil damage across 118 square miles of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains and found that about one-fifth of the area experienced high-severity burning that can lead to heavy and even dangerous erosion. 
    • Trees in those areas will take many years to recover without planting.
  • The Black Fire has burned 160,952 acres and is 13% contained as of Wednesday.
    • On Sunday, the fire triggered new evacuations in rural areas, as emergency crews labored to protect homes and outbuildings from advancing flames.
• In Texas, 1 fire has burned 10,960 acres as of Wednesday.
• The number of square miles burned so far this year is far above the 10-year national average.

Extreme Heat

• On Tuesday, California state officials adopted emergency regulations aimed at delivering the most drastic statewide cuts to address the drought thus far.
  • The rules require local water agencies to reduce water use by up to 20% and prohibit any watering of ornamental lawns at businesses and other commercial properties.
  • California’s large reservoirs are depleted, and the snowpack has shrunk to 12 percent of what it usually is this time of year.
  • Gov. Gavin Newsom warned that without significant reductions this summer, the state could enact even more cuts. 
• A new report from the consulting firm, Deloitte, found that climate inaction would cost $178 trillion over the next 50 years.
  • The analysis found that swift action to zero out global greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 could add $43 trillion to the global economy and plant the seeds for a green Industrial Revolution.
  • The report says that if the world warmed by 3 degrees Celsius (5.4 Fahrenheit) compared to pre-industrial times, it would hinder economic growth in every region.
    • Economic opportunities would dwindle since countries would have to spend money on repairing damages from climate change instead of on new innovations.

New Reports And Data

• A May 2022 study found that restoring abandoned farms could help mitigate climate change.
• A May 2022 report found that climate inaction would cost $178 trillion over the next 50 years.
• A May 2022 study found that communities of color are exposed to 55% more nitrogen dioxide, which contributes to smog, than mostly white communities.