In its latest attempt to diminish science, the Trump admin released the Fourth National Climate Assessment on a holiday weekend when they thought no one was paying attention. But make no mistake - we noticed, and will not let them stand in the way of real climate action. #NCA4
The National Climate Assessment is too important to ignore. Every day until @HouseDemocrats take back the Majority, I will be sharing findings from #NCA4. Please like and RT to amplify the significance of #ClimateChange and how it affects us all. #ClimateCrisisCountdown
As the top Democrat on the @SciCmteDems Environment Subcommittee, I take my responsibility seriously to #DefendScience and protect our environment. To start the #ClimateCrisisCountdown, I am going to share a few of the most staggering facts from the #NCA4
CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere are now higher than at any time in the last 3 million years. Climate change will persist for decades to millennia. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
The global average temperature has increased by about 1.8°F from 1901 to 2016. Overwhelming evidence consistently points to human activities, especially greenhouse gas emissions, as the dominant cause. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Our oceans are warming and becoming more acidic. They have absorbed 93% of the heat from warming caused by human activities since the mid-20th century and are absorbing more than a quarter of the CO2 emitted to the atmosphere annually #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
The sea level is very likely to rise 1 to 4 feet by the end of the century, devastating many coastal communities. The frequency, depth, and extent of tidal flooding are expected to continue to increase in the future with coastal storms. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Projections show large declines in snowpack in the western U.S. and shifts to more rain rather than snow. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
It is very likely that the Arctic will be nearly free of sea ice in late summer by mid-century. As permafrost continues to thaw, the CO2 and methane released has the potential to amplify human-induced warming. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
The effect of humans on the Earth’s climate is unprecedented. Since the start of the industrial era, our dependency on fossil fuels, widespread deforestation, and other carbon-producing activities have caused and continue to cause irreparable damage. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Tune in tomorrow and every day through the end of the year for more findings from the #NCA4 and the #ClimateCrisisCountdown
In the Northwest, Pacific salmon populations are threatened by climate stressors, including low snowpack, decreasing streamflow in the summer, habitat loss through increasing storm intensity and flooding. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Drought, warming temperatures, and earlier spring snowmelt have led to an increase in fire activity. Wildfires burned at least 3.7 million acres (an area larger than the entire state of CT!) nationwide in 14 of the 17 years between 2000 and 2016. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Ocean surface waters have warmed on average 1.3°F per century between 1900 and 2016, and more than 90% of the extra heat linked to carbon emissions is contained in the ocean. This has a direct and independent effect on the chemistry of the ocean. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
It has been one week since the Fourth National Climate Assessment was released. We won't back down. #ClimateFriday #ActOnClimate #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Coastal counties comprise approx 10% of the continental U.S. in land cover, yet represent 39% of the U.S. population (densities 6x higher than non-coastal areas). Flooding & extreme weather events pose threats to people & property in coastal zones #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Increasing extreme weather could damage energy production, generation, transmission, and distribution equipment. It could also cause widespread disruption that takes weeks to resolve, at sizeable costs. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Water scarcity is becoming a reality in the U.S. Variable precipitation and rising temperatures are intensifying droughts, increasing heavy downpours, reducing snowpack, and leading to significant differences in water supply and demand. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Ocean acidification events are already increasing and are projected to become more intense, longer, and common. This could reduce shellfish harvest, resulting in cumulative consumer losses of $230 million across all U.S. shellfish fisheries by 2099. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Grasslands, forests, and wetlands cover about two-thirds of the contiguous U.S. land area and experienced a decline of approx 5,150 square miles from 2001-2011. Decisions about land use & management determine our ability to adapt to climate change. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Storms, floods, and erosion have always been hazardous, but combined with rising sea levels they now threaten approximately $1 trillion of coastal real estate. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown #ActOnClimate
Climate change has broad implications for food security. Yields from major crops are expected to decline because of higher temperatures, increasing droughts, significant fire risks, and depletion of water resources. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
Most of the U.S. population occupies just 1-5% of the land in North America, but this population is responsible for approximately 80% of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions on the continent. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown #ClimateFriday
Toxic algal blooms are increasing in intensity and frequency. Rising temperatures, warmer waters, human activities, and increased nutrient runoff accelerate hypoxic events when the ocean’s oxygen drops below healthy levels. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown #ActOnClimate
Forests offset approx 11% of U.S. CO2 emissions between 1990-2015, but without intervention that capability will decline. Because of aging forests and increased land use, forests are projected to store less carbon (35% less than 2013 levels by 2037). #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown
The oceans play a pivotal role in the global climate system - absorbing and redistributing heat and carbon dioxide. Human-caused carbon emissions harm ocean ecosystems through three processes: warming, acidification, and deoxygenation. #NCA4 #ClimateCrisisCountdown #ActOnClimate
We will need to do much more adaptation and resilience to address the effects of climate change unless we make a significant and sustained effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. #NCA4 #ActOnClimate #ClimateCrisisCountdown
