The Biden administration made clear what would happen to the US economy if global warming went unchecked: it would be disastrous.
According to the much-expected fifth National Climate Assessment report, there are “billion-dollar disasters” occurring roughly every three weeks on average. Compared to 1980, that was every four months.
More heat waves, storms, droughts, floods, and rising sea levels are to be expected if countries, especially the two largest carbon polluters, the United States and China, decide not to reduce their emissions that warm the earth. According to the research, there are significant threats to infrastructure, human health, and economic growth. Chelsea Harvey writes about this.
These extreme scenarios may include a 6-foot increase in sea levels throughout the continental U.S. coast by the end of this century. “Low-probability and potentially catastrophic outcomes are not impossible,” the research states, “and these risks persist even under current policies.”
Chelsea argues that the White House report is the most comprehensive assessment of American climate research, implications, and measures to date. The last report, which was released the day after Thanksgiving in 2018, when the Trump administration was in office, was obscured by the festivities.
The report in this instance comes at a very different time. Under President Joe Biden, US climate ambassadors are traveling the world once more to promote agreement on how to combat climate change. However, success at COP28, the global climate conference that begins in less than two weeks in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, might be undone by escalating geopolitical tensions.
The government study being released on the same day as a United Nations report, authored by Sara Schonhardt, finds that, despite the 2015 Paris Agreement’s drive for gradual, significant cutbacks in carbon emissions, worldwide emissions are still rising.
Two additional chapters—one each on economics and environmental justice—are added to the US report.
Affordably priced insurance, local businesses, and GDP development are all at risk from climate change. Additionally, it disproportionately affects underprivileged groups, including Alaska’s indigenous people.
According to the research, “the choices societies make today will determine how much more the world warms.” The future is in the hands of people.
In his opening remarks for the day, Biden listed a number of climate-related calamities, such as floods in New York and wildfires in Hawaii. Zack Colman notes that despite all the alarming news, the White House still offered a ray of hope by highlighting the US’s climate obligations.
National climate adviser Ali Zaidi stated, “The lesson from this assessment, the lesson from all of our collective work on climate, should not be doom and despair.” He advocated for a “sense of hope and possibilities” instead.
But election season is about to begin. Depending on who wins the presidency in 2024, U.S. climate policy may alter significantly.
In recent months, major manufacturers such as Ford and General Motors have reduced their output of electric vehicles, claiming a decline in consumer demand. However, as of late, recent data indicates that EV sales have increased by 55% over the previous year and are continuing to rise.
With plug-in hybrids excluded, more than 963,000 electric vehicles have been sold in the United States thus far this year, indicating that automakers could anticipate surpassing the one million unit sales threshold for the first time, as reported by BloombergNEF. EV consulting organization Atlas Public Policy also released figures today indicating that September was the best month ever for EV sales, with 136,000 vehicles sold.
In the United States, fossil fuels still power the vast majority of automobiles. However, other analysts claim that the market share of EVs has gone beyond the “tipping point,” at which sales may quickly surge toward widespread acceptance.
During the first half of the year, EV sales accounted for 8% of new car sales, according to BloombergNEF. That percentage reached 11% in September, according to Atlas Public Policy.
President Biden reaffirmed that the United States faces an obvious and immediate threat from climate change. President Biden will take action on this emergency, as Congress has not. President Biden will declare other executive steps to address this emergency in the upcoming weeks.
President Biden unveiled his most recent executive measures last year with the goal of leveraging the climate problem to create high-paying employment in clean energy and reduce expenses for families. His efforts would increase offshore wind prospects and employment in the United States while safeguarding communities from the effects of climate change that are already being felt, such as the severe heat that is affecting over 100 million Americans this week.
Every year, millions of Americans experience the consequences of climate change as their schools flood, roads wash out, electricity goes out, or homes are destroyed by wildfires. The United States had 20 catastrophic weather and climate-related disaster events last year alone, with losses totaling more than $1 billion and an overall cost of more than $145 billion. Individuals of color and marginalized groups are more susceptible to the consequences of climate change, including adverse health and environmental outcomes from extreme weather events. Furthermore, climate change and extreme weather pose a threat to the nation’s vital infrastructure.
