A draft of the Third National Climate Assessment (NCA) has been released by the Climate Assessment Development Advisory Committee (NCADAC). The committee says this is the most peer-reviewed analysis of climate change impacts on the United States. The assessment was written by 240 scientists and other experts from academia; local, state, and federal government; business; and the non‐profit sector. The public can review the draft and submit comments, and the final draft is expected to be released in early 2014.
Several key findings include new and stronger evidence that global climate is changing, extreme weather and climate events are increasing, and that the increase is related to human activities. In addition, the report finds:
- Global climate is changing, and this is apparent across the US in a wide range of observations. The climate change of the past 50 years is due primarily to human activities, predominantly the burning of fossil fuels and is expected to accelerate if action is not taken.
- Some extreme weather and climate events have increased in recent decades, and there is new and stronger evidence that many of these increases are related to human activities.
- Impacts related to climate change are already evident in many sectors and are expected to become increasingly challenging across the nation throughout this century and beyond.
- Climate change threatens human health and well-being in many ways, including impacts from increased extreme weather events, wildfire, decreased air quality, diseases transmitted by insects food and water and threats to mental health.
- Infrastructure across the U.S. is being adversely affected by phenomena associated with climate change, including sea level rise, storm surge, heavy downpours, and extreme heat.
- Reliability of water supplies is being reduced by climate change in a variety of ways that affect ecosystems and livelihoods in many regions, particularly the Southwest, the Great Plains, the Southeast, and the islands of the Caribbean and the Pacific, including the state of Hawaii.
- Adverse impacts to crops and livestock over the next 100 years are expected. Over the next 25 years or so, the agriculture sector is projected to be relatively resilient, even though there will be increasing disruptions from extreme heat, drought, and heavy downpours. U.S. food security and farm incomes will also depend on how agricultural systems adapt to climate changes in other regions of the world.
The public review period will last until April 12, 2013. The Global Change Research Act of 1990 requires that a report must be presented to the President and the Congress every four years that provides a thorough overview of the status of climate science and climate change impacts.
0 responses to “Third National Climate Assessment Released”
Ms Schroeder,
I am educated on this subject and am usually defending Climate Change action.
I have read the report and I ask that you consider editing this summary conclusion.
Now, more than ever, we need to find overwhelming consensus for action.
I do not ask anyone to change nor ignore data.
I do point out that the conclusions of the report were more careful in their wording regarding severe weather, incidents, of which are de-creasing. ( Do not hype the data. )
Climate Change is a historical constant. In the last 50 years a vast amount of data records changes beyond those historically anticipated.
Humans have made geographically significant changes to the earth’s climate ( here, here and here ) and humans should be planning and responding to these observed and recorded climate change trends, to prepare for these threats.
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Your sentence: “Climate Change threatens … in many ways, including impacts from increased extreme weather events … ”
Water and food and infrastructure-energy and habitation are the greatest threats to humans, based on the data. ( Storms, not. )
The order of these bullet points may follow the report ? but I write to ask that you consider editing to consider the audience of the “unconvinced” or downright “hostile”.
We will all do much more, much sooner, if we communicate clearly, the data and the conclusions, without hyperbole or error.
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Thank you for your time and consideration,
Jonathan Fraser
What a crock! Every bullet point is a generalization and/or prediction. Are these 240 scientist Mayan? One thing scientist do is lots of math and there is not one statistic on this article. No statistics on the percentages of change,no stat on how much it has increased,etc. If anything, climate change is just another word for pollution. The worlds climate has only increased like 1/2 a percentage over the last 30 years, that is not anything to raise a flag about. The reason we have extreme weather is with technology we have been able to track more weather items versus 30 years when we had no pc’s.
I’m sorry, but the past history of “scientists” in the field of “climate change” or “global warming,” or whatever the current euphemism may be, tweaking statistics to meet a political agenda has completely discredited the entire enterprise as so much hogwash.
Dear Sirs, your research endeavours and initiatives relating to the effects of CLIMATE CHANGE and the consequences thereof is very impressive, however, I do believe one should also be addressing the most important question which is the WORLD’S POPULATION EXPLOSION. Yes us humans happens to be very irresponsible and distructive in every way as we continue to abuse the earth’s environment. We can try to save and feed the children of this world while at same time provide medicine and health care to the destitute and helpless in those underdeveloped countries, but the impact of such population growth must be a component for discussion on the Climate Change Agenda.