Aug. 21, 2019 – On Sunday, the Pentagon announced that it had launched a Tomahawk cruise missile with a range “more than 500 kilometers” from a ground-based launcher at a test site in California. The purpose, it said, was to use “data collected and lessons learned from this test” to “inform the Department of Defense’s […]
Union of Concerned Scientists
Joseph Daniel: As Heatwave Blankets Nation, Utility Disconnect Policies Can Kill
July 22, 2019 – As temperatures increase, so does our reliance on things like air conditioning. That increased electric load can stress the grid, but it can also stress our pocketbooks with the increased use of A/C translating into increased electric bills. Sadly, an increasing number of people in the United States struggle to pay their electric […]
Southwest Region Areas to Endure 7 Weeks or More a Year When “Feels Like” Temperature Exceeds 105 Degrees
WASHINGTON, July 16, 2019—Increases in potentially lethal heat driven by climate change will affect every state in the contiguous U.S. in the decades ahead, according to a new report and accompanying peer-reviewed study in Environmental Research Communications, both by the Union of Concerned Scientists, released today. Few places would be unaffected by extreme heat conditions by […]
Gretchen Goldman: Wheeler’s Breathtaking Ignorance of Science, in One Comment
June 7, 2019 – At the EPA’s Science Advisory Board meeting, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler made comments on the agency’s proposed Restricting Science Rule that raised eyebrows for anyone who understands the basics of health studies. In his defense of the rule (which the scientific community agrees will severely hamstring the agency’s ability to rely on the best available science […]
Urgent Action on Climate Change Will Prevent Heat-Related Deaths in Major US Cities
WASHINGTON, June 6, 2019—The planet will warm by about 3 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels by the end of the century if the U.S. and other nations meet only their current commitments under the Paris climate agreement to reduce emissions of heat-trapping gases. According to a paper by U.S. and U.K. scientists published in Science […]
Carly Phillips: The Vicious Climate-Wildfire Cycle
May 6, 2019 – With little fanfare and scant news coverage, fire season 2019 has arrived. Firefighters are already containing blazes in several states, including Colorado, Florida, and Oklahoma, and seasonal outlooks suggest that significant wildfires are likely in parts of Alaska, Hawaii and the West Coast. While forest management and human development have increased […]
House Leaders Introduce Legislation Requiring US to Remain in Paris Climate Agreement
WASHINGTON March 27, 2019 – Today, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) along with other members of the House introduced H. RES 9 – the Climate Action Now Act. This bill urges the United States to honor its commitment to the Paris climate agreement, blocks the federal government from using funds to advance withdrawal from that […]
GAO Report Concludes Climate Change Will Cost Taxpayers Even More if Government Fails to Act
WASHINGTON, March 6, 2019 – The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) today released its 2019 “High Risk” report, which—like previous reports—concluded that climate change is a major threat to taxpayer-funded federal programs and that the government must do more to address this ever-worsening problem. Produced every two years, the report identifies federal agencies and programs […]
Higher Tides Will Threaten More than 20,000 Coastal Homes by Mid-Century
OAKLAND, CA, June 18, 2018 – Accelerating sea level rise along California’s shoreline, primarily driven by climate change, is projected to put more than 20,000 coastal homes at risk of chronic, disruptive flooding within the next 30 years, according to a report released today by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). The California homes at […]
Scientists Tell Congress: Don’t Strip Science Out of the Endangered Species Act
WASHINGTON, May 18, 2018—Nearly 1,500 scientists sent a letter to members of Congress today, Endangered Species Day, urging them to oppose legislation that would weaken the role science plays in protecting endangered species and their ecosystems. Several bills have been introduced that would undercut the Endangered Species Act, including delisting species without a scientific basis, […]
Dave Cooke: Automakers Pretend President Trump Isn’t Giving Them Exactly What They Asked For
May 11, 2018 – Today, automakers are meeting with President Trump to discuss his administration’s plans to rollback fuel efficiency and emissions standards on light-duty vehicles. Since reports of the proposal first began to leak, we’ve seen a number of statements from automakers claiming that this wasn’t what they asked for. Unfortunately, these statements ring hollow—and their […]
Scientists Oppose Pruitt’s Research Restrictions
WASHINGTON, April 23, 2018 – Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt is set to introduce a new policy that would severely hamstring the agency when it comes to developing and enforcing public health rules by limiting the kinds of research the EPA can use in crafting rules. In a letter, led by former EPA […]
Genna Reed: Peter Wright’s Nomination at EPA Means Superfund Conflicts of Interest in Almost All 50 States
April 17, 2018 – Last month, the Trump administration nominated Peter Wright from DowDuPont to serve as Assistant Administrator at the EPA’s Office of Land and Emergency Management (OLEM). This office plays a critical role in protecting public health by enforcing the Superfund program (the government’s effort to clean up sites that are contaminated with […]
Ken Kimmell: Trump’s Infrastructure Plan a State Burden and Pretext for Regulatory Rollbacks
WASHINGTON, February 12, 2018—President Donald Trump released his administration’s outline for an infrastructure package today. Trump’s plan raises serious concerns because it would suppress environmental reviews of new infrastructure projects, and it neglects to make sufficient investments in projects that hasten the country’s transition to clean energy and make communities more resilient to climate change, […]
Top Scientists Release Plan for Changing US Nuclear-Use Protocol
CAMBRIDGE, MA,. January 24, 2018 – The U.S. protocol for ordering a nuclear attack should be revised to require not only an order from the president, but consent by the next two officials in the presidential chain of succession—the vice president and speaker of the House of Representatives—according to a paper published today in the […]
Genna Reed: New Report Reveals Trump Administration Is Abandoning Science Advice
January 22, 2018 – Unease. Frustration. Indignation. Experts serving as members of federal advisory committees are being frozen out of the very avenues that were designed to encourage external input on scientific issues to the federal government. A new Center for Science and Democracy report released today, Abandoning Science Advice: One Year In, the Trump […]
Rachel Cleetus: NOAA Report Shows 2017 Was the Costliest Year on Record for US Disasters
January 9, 2018 – Yesterday NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center released its yearly report on “billion-dollar weather and climate disasters” that affected the US in 2017. Not surprisingly, the numbers were staggering. The costs of 2017 disasters, at $306.2 billion dollars cumulatively, set a new US record that blew past previous totals. These events also resulted in […]
Local Management Plans May Not Protect California Groundwater from Climate Change Risk
November 27, 2017 – While hundreds of local agencies across California draft their plans to ensure the sustainability of groundwater basins, water experts say in a white paper released today that these state-mandated plans need to incorporate climate change impacts to be sustainable. The paper is intended to serve as a resource to help agencies do just […]
Andrew Rosenberg: Vice President Pence Touts “Success” in Gutting Public Health and Safety Protections
WASHINGTON, October 2, 2017 – Today, Vice President Mike Pence gave a speech touting the Trump administration’s efforts to delay, undermine and cut science-based safeguards. Unfortunately, the administration has ignored science and the public interest in its rush to deregulate, leaving Americans, especially low-income communities and communities of color who often face the greatest threats, […]
Ken Kimmel: DOE Secretary Perry Dismisses Science, Impact of Carbon Dioxide on Climate
WASHINGTON, June 19, 2017—US Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Rick Perry says he does not believe carbon dioxide emissions from human activity are the primary driver of climate change, dismissing science completed by his own agency and others within the federal government. Below is a statement by Ken Kimmell, president of the Union of Concerned […]