The risk of climate catastrophe is complex, but people of color often face ‘unnatural hazards.’
Flooding
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Remove dams to fight the climate crisis
Ten reasons bringing down these barriers are key for mitigation and adaptation.
Posted inNovember 1, 2023: November 1, 2023
When burn scars become roaring earthen rivers
Geologists in Washington are monitoring scorched forest to help create a better warning system for deadly debris flows.
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This year’s record-breaking snowpack is pouring into the dried-out Salt Lake
Snowmelt is replenishing depleted ecosystems and flooding communities.
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As the West’s epic snow melts, flood danger rises
How do 2023’s atmospheric rivers compare to past extremes and what can be expected in the future?
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Displaced by the climate crisis
Jake Bittle’s new book foregrounds the experience of those already affected by a worsening climate.
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The Salinas River and the foretold flood
Agriculture beat the river into submission. It’s back.
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How California’s emergency plans fail disabled communities
Kelley Coleman’s 9-year-old son had two days of his medication left. Then the evacuation order hit.
Posted inMarch 1, 2023: Moving Parts
California’s power outages are a life-and-death issue
A perspective on the impacts of storms for people with disabilities.
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After June’s floods, will the Yellowstone River be allowed to roam?
Rock walls called riprap constrain the river to protect property from erosion —but there are other options.
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When a housing crisis meets a megaflood
June’s massive Yellowstone-area floods illuminated and worsened housing inequities across southwestern Montana.
Posted inDecember 1, 2022: Beyond Illusion
Rising rivers don’t necessarily follow the lines on a map
June’s record-breaking flooding in Montana illustrates the importance of risk mapping for people living in the floodplain.
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What’s it like to live in a tourist town with no tourists?
After the floods, Yellowstone gateway communities are grappling with what comes next.
Posted inSeptember 1, 2022: Going Under
Flooding could breathe life into Yellowstone ecosystem
Although destructive for people, high-water events are a natural part of river systems.
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The funky politics of wildfire right now
After New Mexico’s record-breaking fires, the politics of wildfire are morphing into weird configurations.
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In the wake of fires and floods
Climate disasters across the West wreak havoc on economies and livelihoods.
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Yellowstone area flooding upends lives and portends a new climate reality
Unprecedented rain and snowmelt destroyed roads and washed away bridges outside the national park.
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Why rural communities struggle to bring in much-needed federal grants
A new analysis suggests that over half of communities in the West lack the capacity to take advantage of infrastructure bill funding. Now what?
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In the wake of floods, what’s next for salmon?
Recently released eggs likely bore the brunt of record-breaking rains in the Pacific Northwest.
Posted inApril 3, 2017: Firestorm
Have we underestimated the West’s super-floods?
Scientists warn that enormous floods may be more likely than we thought — and the Oroville Dam and others weren’t built to withstand them.