Why New York and New Jersey are at risk of spring wildfires
The wildfire scorching southern New Jersey ignited despite a series of downpours in recent weeks — and the region is ripe for more blazes.
April’s rains didn’t soak into the ground enough to prevent the fire from erupting at the edge of New Jersey’s pine barrens reserve. The blaze — which was allegedly sparked by an improperly extinguished bonfire — has burned 21 square miles (54 square kilometers) and is expected to grow in the coming days.
Read more on Insurance Journal.
With Trump and climate change, denial is a hell of a drug
Trump is trying make a climate report go extinct
Facts can be awfully stubborn things. And they’re especially inconvenient for the Trump administration.
So the president and his goons are simply disappearing them, deleting vast tranches of scientific, health, and other data from federal websites.
Why bother with a debate over the facts when you can fix it so they don’t exist in the first place? It’s much easier to deem racial health disparities a myth if there’s no longer a massive reservoir of government data showing otherwise, for example. And it’s easier to suggest vaccines cause autism if you scrub the data suggesting that theory is a massive and deadly crock.
Nowhere has this approach been clearer than on climate and the environment, where, in its efforts at “Reinvigorating America’s Beautiful Clean Coal Industry,” the administration has demanded that thousands of datasets be removed from federal websites, including the State Department, the Department of Agriculture, and NASA — or hidden so the public cannot find them.
Read more on The Boston Globe.
Thawing grounds, rising stakes: The importance of including permafrost emissions in climate policy
As the world races to limit global warming to 1.5°C, a critical and often overlooked climate threat looms: the rapid thaw of permafrost in Arctic regions. Permafrost1)—continuously frozen ground that covers vast portions of the Arctic—is thawing, releasing large amounts of greenhouse gases (GHGs) previously locked in frozen soils, amplifying warming at a scale that could derail global climate goals. Current international climate plans put the world on track for a warming of around 2.7°C, far exceeding the Paris Agreement’s target.2) Yet emissions from thawing permafrost remain largely absent from Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)—the cornerstone of international climate commitments under the Paris Agreement. This article explores why permafrost emissions are excluded from NDCs and the consequences of this omission, and proposes concrete steps to ensure that permafrost emissions are fully integrated into future climate strategies. This substantial gap in climate policy threatens Arctic ecosystems and the global effort to stabilize the climate.
Read more on The Arctic Institute website.
Guest commentary: We must stand together
Falmouth is more than just a picturesque coastal town; it is a vibrant village of discovery built over decades around the pillars of science, education and environmental stewardship. In the same way, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), Woodwell Climate Research Center and Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) are not just esteemed institutions, but integral parts of our community.
Continue reading on The Falmouth Enterprise.
Arctic sea ice hits record low for its usual peak growth period
Arctic sea ice had its weakest winter buildup since record-keeping began 47 years ago, a symptom of climate change that will have repercussions globally, scientists said Thursday.
The Arctic reaches its maximum sea ice in March each year and then starts a six-month melt season. The National Snow and Ice Data Center said the peak measurement taken Saturday was 5.53 million square miles (14.33 million square kilometers) — about 30,000 square miles (80,000 square kilometers) smaller than the lowest previous peak in 2017.
That’s a difference about the size of California.
This town on the Cape is a hub for climate scientists. Under Trump, its local economy is shaking.
The small community on the upper Cape has been a company town for environmental scientists for over a century.
An unease has settled over this small-town community of scientists lately like the fog that crept across the upper Cape on a recent March morning.
It’s difficult to see around the bend: Will the scientists have a job next month? Will their life’s work be halted? Will their colleagues flee abroad, seeking funds and political support for their research?
“Science in Woods Hole is most definitely under threat,” said Max Holmes, president and CEO of Woodwell Climate Research Center.
“We don’t know what the future holds, but we’re not going to just sit back and wait,” Holmes said. “We’re going to use our voice.”
Continue reading on The Boston Globe.
How rolling back EPA regulations could impact New England air and water
Researchers and advocates in New England say the federal government’s plans to reconsider environmental rules could have long-lasting effects on public health, air pollution and ecosystems in Massachusetts and across the region.
The Environmental Protection Agency this week announced a long list of regulations it expects to review including those that limit factory pollution, vehicle emissions and wastewater from coal-fired power plants.
Woods Hole researchers rally to support the sciences
Hundreds of people gathered at Waterfront Park in Woods Hole Friday as part of the Stand Up for Science rallies held around the world in response to the Trump administration’s federal funding cuts in scientific research and diversity equity and inclusion initiatives.
Jim Newman, one of the organizers of the event and an engineer who has worked in oceanography, said it is important for the Woods Hole community to take part because of how integral scientific institutions are to the village.
“We heard about this national effort and said we got to do something in Woods Hole. How could we not, given who we are?” Mr. Newman said. “The world of science is under attack. There are drastic cuts being threatened…It’s very local because science is a huge part of Woods Hole.”
Continue reading on Vineyard Gazette.