Chaos in the Water Cycle

Methane Causes Beef with New York

Beef production has the highest total greenhouse gas emissions, namely methane, of any major food commodity, with animal agriculture accounting for 14.5% of annual global greenhouse gas emissions. Beef production is also linked to large-scale deforestation. The state of New York recently sued the U.S. branch of the world’s largest meatpacker, JBS for misleading customers over its climate goals, including a plan to reach net zero carbon neutral standards by 2040. According to the lawsuit, JBS has driven more than 2.4 million acres of Amazon deforestation, has poured record methane pollution into the atmosphere, and has a total climate footprint estimated to exceed the entire country of Spain.

Ed Helmore, The Guardian

VA Medical Centers Vulnerable to Extreme Weather

A recent report by the Department of Veterans Affairs identified hospitals in Kansas, Oklahoma, Arizona, and Florida as most at-risk for climate change-driven storms, flooding, wildfires, and extreme temperatures that could damage VA facilities, cut staffing, and hinder access to care. Serving more than 9 million veterans and employing more people than any other healthcare system in the U.S., the VA conducted a Climate Vulnerability Assessment as a first step in figuring out how to best prepare. Overall, the report showed that more than half of VA medical centers were moderately or highly exposed to extreme precipitation and flooding, 62% to extreme heat, 61% to winter weather, 65% to severe weather, 38% to hurricanes, and 49% to droughts and wildfires. The VA has spent over a billion dollars upgrading facilities to become more energy and water-efficient.

Anne Marshall-Chalmers, Inside Climate News

Chaos in the Water Cycle

The water cycle that shuttles Earth’s most vital resource around in an unending, life-giving loop is in trouble. Climate change has disrupted the cycle’s delicate balance, and almost every part of the U.S. is facing consequences. Temperatures are obviously rising. For every degree of warming in Fahrenheit, the atmosphere can hold about 3 to 4% more moisture, leading to more extreme precipitation. With warmer temperatures and more moisture, hurricanes today are more likely to rapidly intensify. Hotter temperatures are also increasing evaporation and transpiration in some areas, making drought more likely and stressing plants. In some drought stricken areas, water levels have dropped and allowed saltwater from the Gulf to contaminate urban drinking water.

Denise Chow and Evan Bush, NBC News

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