US Climate Agency Halts Tracking of Costly Natural Disasters: What This Means for You

The Trump administration recently announced it will stop updating a key database that tracks costly climate and weather disasters. This decision is part of broader budget cuts to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

For over 40 years, this database has been essential for researchers, journalists, and the public to monitor significant events like wildfires and hurricanes, all of which have caused damages exceeding $1 billion when adjusted for inflation. The database will remain archived but won’t receive new updates.

Since 1980, the U.S. has recorded 403 billion-dollar weather and climate disasters, totaling more than $2.9 trillion in damages. A time-series chart reveals a troubling trend: while the number of disasters varies yearly, it’s clearly rising. Experts link this increase to climate instability driven by fossil fuel emissions.

Maya Golden-Krasner from the Center for Biological Diversity spoke out against this decision. She argued that cutting these updates only obscures the true costs of climate disasters, leaving Americans unprepared. “Leaders need to keep track of these costs and hold polluters accountable,” she stated.

This change reflects a pattern in Trump’s climate strategy. On his first day in office, he withdrew the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement and has since pushed for aggressive rollbacks of climate protections. His administration’s plans align with “Project 2025,” a right-wing initiative that views NOAA as a source of “climate alarmism.”

NOAA has faced significant workforce reductions, losing about 20% of its staff, and is facing a budget cut of $1.5 billion, nearly a quarter of its total funding. This follows the dismissal of over 400 authors of the National Climate Assessment, a crucial government report on climate change mandated by Congress.

As our planet continues to face climate challenges, keeping accurate records is more important than ever. The effects of climate change are visible, and the need for transparency in reporting these impacts is crucial for public awareness and accountability.

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