Facts Of The Day 9/28

Extreme Heat

• People of color suffer disparate rates of heart disease and are more likely to live in warmer, more polluted areas; factors that put them at higher risk from extreme heat brought on by climate change.

• As Arizona faces droughts and declining water availability, farmers turn to more drought-resistant crops, such as tepary beans.

• Scientists and Indigenous community leaders in Utah are attempting to reintroduce the Four Corners Potato as a possible solution for people impacted by climate change.

• A farmer in Chippewa, Wisconsin predicts he will lose a third of his Christmas tree seedlings due to the spring drought.

• Due to warming temperatures from climate change, Georgia may not be able to grow peaches by 2100.

• On Friday, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz announced a $10 million drought relief package to help state farmers and ranchers impacted by severe drought conditions.

• Due to the ongoing drought, Wyoming cattle ranchers have been buying additional hay to feed their livestock or sell their cattle.

• The IRS is providing an additional year to replace livestock farmers were forced to sell due to droughts and defer tax on forced sales.

• Clam farmers in Pine Island, Florida are considering using clams to serve as water filters to help address red tide in the region.

• Texas state officials have failed to address frozen power plant equipment and fracked natural gas shortages, 2 key issues that led to the February 2021 blackouts.

• ERCOT, the operator of the Texas electric grid, claims it had no choice but to charge Brazos Electric Power about $2 billion for power and other related services relating to February’s blackouts.

Wildfires

• As of Tuesday, there are currently 64 large active wildfires that have burned 3,163,023 acres across CA, CO, ID, MN, MT, NV, OR, WA, WY, OK, and KS. This year to date, 46,121 wildfires have burned 5,883,203 acres across the country.

• Wildfire smoke from California could pose health risks to people as far away as Kansas and Nebraska.

• In California, 10 fires have burned 1,991,022 acres as of Tuesday.

  • As of Monday evening, 5,438 California residents statewide have been evacuated.

  • The Caldor Fire burned 221,774 acres and was 76% contained as of Tuesday.

  • The Dixie Fire burned 963,309 acres and was 94% contained as of Tuesday.

  • The Fawn Fire burned 8,577 acres and was 60% contained as of Tuesday.

    • As of Monday evening, 3 firefighters have been injured, 184 structures have been destroyed and almost 1,800 personnel are working to contain the fire.

  • The KNP Complex Fire burned 46,976 acres and was 8% contained as of Tuesday.

• In Colorado, 1 fire has burned a total of 3,792 acres as of Tuesday.

• In Idaho, 20 fires have burned a total of 259,264 acres as of Tuesday.

• In Kansas, 1 fire has burned a total of 1,800 acres as of Tuesday

• In Minnesota, 1 fire has burned a total of 26,797 acres as of Tuesday.

• In Montana, 9 fires have burned a total of 222,273 acres as of Tuesday.

• In Nevada, 2 fires have burned a total of 89,637 acres as of Tuesday.

• In Oklahoma, 1 fire has burned a total of 1,100 acres as of Tuesday.

• In Oregon, 6 fires have burned a total of 292,253 acres as of Tuesday.

• In Washington, 9 fires have burned a total of 258,769 acres as of Tuesday.

• In Wyoming, 4 fires have burned a total of 16,316 acres as of Tuesday.

Hurricanes

• As of Tuesday morning, Hurricane Sam was a Category 4 storm with winds measuring at 130 MPH and was moving northwest at 8 MPH and was located 610 miles east-southeast from the northern Leeward Islands.

  • Although Sam is not expected to directly impact the US, it could cause significant, life-threatening swells that could affect the eastern United States and Atlantic Canada by the weekend.

  • Sam is expected to create large swells that will impact the Leeward Islands and then parts of the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, the Bahamas, and Bermuda by the end of the week.

• New York will pledge $27 million to help undocumented residents affected by Hurricane Ida.

  • One woman had to pry open the door of her apartment, which was the only exit, to escape her flooding basement during Ida’s storms.

  • One man has lost almost everything, including personal photos and important documents.

• Local and state officials visited a Section 8 apartment complex in Elizabeth, New Jersey on Monday, where 4 people died and as many as 600 people have been left homeless by Hurricane Ida.

  • Residents have been living with family members or moving from hotel to hotel as they await answers as to when they can return.

  • Although some residents have been able to return, there are some units that are so badly damaged by flooding that they will be uninhabitable for at least a year.

  • Finding available housing nearby has been a challenge, with residents being offered spaces as far away as Atlantic City and Lakewood, New Jersey.

• The city of Maple Terrace, New Jersey has renewed talks with the state about overhauling the drainage system after a resident died trying to clear debris from the opening of a culvert,  a concrete stormwater tunnel during Hurricane Ida.

  • The man fell into the tunnel, which is about 3 feet in diameter, was then swept through a drainage network beneath the streets, and was found dead at the opening of the drainage system a few blocks from his home.

  • Decades of neglect have meant the drainage channel has narrowed due to being filled by soil and sediment, with the culvert opening blocked by tree limbs, branches, and other debris.

  • Neighbors had previously complained about flooding in their yards and basements from excess stormwater that would escape the open drainage channel that feeds the culvert.

• Louisiana’s commercial oyster industry, which generates almost 4,000 jobs and $317 million in revenue annually, could need a year to recover from Hurricane Ida.

• The Northeast saw multiple storms over the summer due to increasing temperatures and humidity brought on by climate change.

Climate Studies