• One in Six Properties in England Will Be Affected by Flood Risk by 2050: Study

    Flood risk affects English residential property values. New report shows that residential properties at risk of flooding are sold at 8.14% lower on average compared to non-affected properties. The report shines a light on the extent to which climate change and the increased propensity of natural disasters is affecting the housing market.

  • Commercial Investors Shift Perspective of Coastal Properties in Face of Climate Change

    Investors in commercial real estate are rethinking the values of coastal properties exposed to flood risk — even in northern U.S. locales that haven’t suffered flood damage, according to researchers. This shift in perspective has implications for investors and developers alike as they determine the value of coastal properties amid a changing climate.

  • Americans’ Support for Nuclear Power Soars to Highest Level in a Decade

    A Gallup survey released in late April found that 55 percent of U.S. adults support the use of nuclear power. That’s up four percentage points from last year and reflects the highest level of public support for nuclear energy use in electricity since 2012. As the country looks to decarbonize, the popularity of nuclear continues to climb.

  • Sustaining U.S. Nuclear Power Plants Could be Key to Decarbonization

    Nuclear power is the single largest source of carbon-free energy in the United States and currently provides nearly 20 percent of the nation’s electrical demand. New research sought to answer the question: Just how much do our existing nuclear reactors contribute to the mission of meeting the country’s climate goals, both now and if their operating licenses were extended?

  • Shutting Down Nuclear Power Could Increase Air Pollution

    Nearly 20 percent of today’s electricity in the United States comes from nuclear power. The U.S. has the largest nuclear fleet in the world, with 92 reactors scattered around the country. Many of these power plants have run for more than half a century and are approaching the end of their expected lifetimes. If reactors are retired, polluting energy sources that fill the gap could cause more than 5,000 premature deaths, researchers estimate.

  • “Statistically Impossible” Heat Extremes Are Here: Study Identifies the Regions Mmost at Risk

    In the summer of 2021, Canada’s all-time temperature record was smashed by almost 5℃. Its new record of 49.6℃ is hotter than anything ever recorded in Spain, Turkey or indeed anywhere in Europe. One of the most important questions when studying these extreme heatwaves is “how long do we have to wait until we experience another similarly intense event?”. This is a challenging question but, fortunately, there is a branch of statistics, called extreme value theory, that provides ways in which we can answer that exact question using past events.

  • Colorado River Water Plan Could Trigger Unprecedented Supply Cuts, Ripple Effects on Key Industries

    Decades of drought and overuse have brought the river’s water levels to historic lows. States in the Lower Colorado River Basin — Arizona, California and Nevada — now must choose between one of three options proposed by the federal government. The economic impact of the river’s dwindling water supplies is could be disastrous.

  • Poorly Understood Environmental Trends Could Become Tomorrow’s Security Threats

    There is an urgent need to understand how a range of emerging ecological challenges could trigger catastrophic instability and insecurity, argues a new report. The authors stress that uncertainty and knowledge gaps should galvanize rather than delay both research and action to prevent, mitigate or adapt to consequences that could be catastrophic.

  • “Flash Droughts” More Frequent as Climate Warms

    ‘Flash droughts’ have become more frequent due to human-caused climate change, and this trend is predicted to accelerate in a warmer future. Flash droughts, which start and develop rapidly, are becoming ‘the new normal’ for droughts, making forecasting and preparing for their impact more difficult.

  • Critical Metal Needs Rise as Cars, Trucks Decarbonize

    The demand for battery-grade lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese and platinum will climb steeply as nations work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through mid-century, but will likely set off economic snags and supply-chain hitches.

  • Feds’ Colorado River Choice: California’s Rights or Arizona’s Future?

    Almost half of all the water that flows through the Colorado River each year is consumed by just two states: Arizona and California. For the Biden administration to stabilize the river, one of the two states will have to lose big.

  • Shutting Down Nuclear Power Could Increase Air Pollution

    Nearly 20 percent of today’s electricity in the United States comes from nuclear power. If reactors are retired, polluting energy sources that fill the gap could cause more than 5,000 premature deaths, researchers estimate.

  • More Frequent Hurricanes Raise Risk to U.S. East and Gulf Coasts

    Warming tropical waters can trigger changes in winds that both strengthen and push hurricanes to the U.S. East and Gulf coasts more often, boosting hurricane frequency by a third compared to current levels.

  • Sea-Level Rise Poses Particular Risk for Asian Megacities

    Sea-level rise this century may disproportionately affect certain Asian megacities as well as western tropical Pacific islands and the western Indian Ocean. Among the Asian megacities that may face especially significant risks: Chennai, Kolkata, Yangon, Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, and Manila.

  • Why Rain on Snow in the California Mountains Worries Scientists

    For much of the United States, storms with heavy rainfall can coincide with seasonal snow cover. When that happens, the resulting runoff of water can be much greater than what is produced from rain or snowmelt alone. The combination has resulted in some of the nation’s most destructive and costly floods.