Climate Impacts Group

Tacoma’s Owen Beach undergoing makeover to protect against rising sea levels

Construction is underway to redesign Owen Beach in Tacoma to make it more resilient against rising sea levels. Research by the UW Climate Impacts Group is referenced.  

Climate change reaps another victim: Mount Rainier’s snowpack

Snow on Mount Rainier is melting earlier and in greater quantities as temperatures rise. Guillaume Mauger is quoted.  

What drives big wildfires in western Washington? This meteorological phenomenon is a factor

Western Washington doesn’t always get strong east winds, but when the winds do arrive, they can lead to huge wildfires. This story references research funded by the Northwest Climate Adaptation Science Center.  

UN climate report: Human activity is driving climate change. Where does that leave Washington?

The UN-appointed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its Sixth Assessment Report, known as the AR6 WG1, on August 9, 2021. It addresses the current state of the global climate, how climate change is shifting, how humans are the leading cause, and possible climate futures. Matt Rogers is quoted.

“In my research I have seen a lot of people on the ground in Washington state take climate change into consideration and how they prepare their communities for upcoming changes and what we can expect as climate changes. It is really heartening. We can always do more, and there are people working on it, but it’s going to take all of us.” – Matt Rogers 

‘Every part of a degree of warming that we can avert will make the future better’

Researcher Amy Snover explains why the IPCC report matters, what it says about climate change in the Northwest, and how communities can prepare.

“This will just keep getting worse until we stop it,” Snover said. “The science is really clear that every bit, every part of a degree of additional warming makes the future worse, which means that every part of a degree of warming that we can avert will make the future better. I do this work because the future isn’t written yet. We’re actually writing it every day we live, and I want to be part of making the future better.” 

Hitting Home: Latest climate change report underscores impacts for Skagit County

As Skagit County experienced yet another stretch of oppressive heat, smoke and continued drought this past week, news alerts kept coming about massive fires in the U.S., Canada and Greece along with word of a Code Red announced in the latest report from a United Nations group studying climate change. Guillaume Mauger is quoted.  

Extreme weather events and climate change

Dr. Crystal Raymond, climate adaptation specialist, says that research on the connection between climate change and wildfires has been very accurate and that expectations are that wildfires won’t get better until we can reduce warming. 

Wildfire forecast: How to stay safe and what to expect this summer in the Pacific Northwest

Is another fiery smokeageddon on the horizon for 2021? And if so, what can you do about it? Climate Adaptation Specialist Dr. Crystal Raymond is quoted.  

Critters search for shade during Washington’s heat wave, possible harbinger of future climate conditions

This week’s heat wave will have an impact on deer, elk, moose, sage-grouse and other species. Exactly how it will impact those species remains to be seen. CIG Director Dr. Amy Snover is quoted.  

Seattle Under the Heat Dome

As global temperatures rise, the Pacific Northwest is obliterating heat records. Climate Impacts Group research is referenced.