The Trump administration has just announced that they will redefine which wetlands and waters have Clean Water Act protections in a new proposed Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule. This rule creates tremendous uncertainty and risk for our nation’s drinking water, flood protections and critical habitats. Based on our peer-reviewed analysis, the new wetland rules could leave nearly all wetlands without Clean Water Act protections.
New York City faces a twin crisis: housing that is increasingly unaffordable, unavailable and unsafe, and climate impacts—like flooding, sea level rise and extreme heat—that are growing more frequent and severe. In fact, more than half of all households are rent-burdened and tens of thousands of those homes are facing climate risks. Low-income residents and communities of color are affected disproportionately by both crises.
By Mallory Honan, Scientist, Livestock Methane; Jack Killcoyne, Senior Research Analyst, Global Livestock Methane; Peri Rosenstein, Senior Scientist, Livestock Systems
A dairy cow’s diet is an integral part of her well-being and productivity; it’s also a critical opportunity for reducing methane emissions. Similar to humans, what cows eat impacts their ability to live healthy, productive lives. Therefore, a major priority for farmers and nutritionists is formulating a diet that satisfies their cows’ dietary requirements.
Unlike humans, though, cows are ruminants — animals that have a compartmentalized digestive organ (three pre-stomachs and one true stomach) — and they digest food very differently. The largest component of their pre-stomach and main site of digestion is aptly named the rumen. This chamber acts as a fermentation vat, with microbes breaking down nutrients from feed. The cow then burps out methane produced as a byproduct via these microbial digestive processes, also known as enteric fermentation.
Managing the Mississippi River Basin at a state level is like making a movie without the director, writers, and actors talking to each other. Despite being the largest watershed in the country, the Mississippi River Basin has no comprehensive restoration program.
The watershed of the Mississippi River spans 31 states and two Canadian provinces. Credit: EPA 2015.
Farmers and ranchers around the world face increased heatwaves, droughts and heavy rainfall, making it harder to grow livestock and crops. This means less financial security for farm families and, globally, bigger threats to people’s access to nutrition.
USDA Photo by Preston Keres
By Elizabeth Montoya-LaPorte, Intern, Climate Resilient Coasts and Watersheds
Virginia faces a diverse set of flood risks, with sea level rise on the eastern coast, landslides exasperating flood risk in the west and more intense and frequent storms throughout the Commonwealth. Between 2020 and 2060, the number of buildings exposed to an extreme coastal flood is projected to nearly double, while annualized flood damages could increase by 400 percent.
To build resilience against these increasing flood risks, lawmakers created the Virginia Community Flood Preparedness Fund (CFPF) in 2020 under the Virginia Clean Energy and Community Flood Preparedness Act. Since its establishment, the CFPF has supported 86 communities and 212 projects, investing more than 200 million dollars in resilience-building funding.
By Sukie Kevane, EDF Intern
Dairy and beef producers are feeling the strain of heat waves — and so are their animals. Longer, hotter summers are making it harder for cows to stay healthy and productive. Heat stress lowers milk yields, weakens cows’ immune systems and can even threaten fertility.
For farmers, the impacts go beyond animal health: heat stress reduces milk yields and fertility in cows, which translates directly into financial losses from lower production and higher management costs. Lower productivity also increases the methane intensity of any milk or meat produced.
But across the world, producers, veterinarians and nutritionists are responding with new tools and time-tested strategies to help livestock cope. These solutions matter not only for animal health, but for food security, rural livelihoods and climate resilience.
Flooding is a growing issue for communities across the United States. And the challenge is not just coastal. In recent years, inland communities that sit near rivers and waterways have experienced more frequent and intense flood events, causing infrastructure damage, social disruptions and economic losses. Much of this can be attributed to the increases in precipitation combined with declines in watershed health of the surrounding lands due to development and agricultural use.
By: Allie Olsonoski, Project Manager, Climate Resilient Coasts and Watersheds and Rachel Rhode, Manager, Climate Resilient Coasts and Watersheds
Flooding is a growing challenge for communities across the United States, particularly in coastal areas. More frequent and extreme storms, rising sea levels, coastal erosion and land subsidence (sinking) are putting people and property at greater risk. While many states and localities are actively working to reduce risk for communities, large infrastructure solutions like levees and seawalls aren’t always possible or practical—especially in rural areas.
In many cases, a more cost-effective solution is not to try to block the water, but to adapt to it. One approach that has been rising to the top is employing ‘nonstructural’ practices, namely home elevation.
As more states begin exploring home elevation programs, they will need to push for local engagement strategies in the communities where they work, in order to be successful.
Just weeks ahead of the 20th anniversary of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, coastal Louisiana is facing a devastating blow to the incredible work that has been done since those tragic storms to reverse land loss and reclaim the title of the Great Bayou. The Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion Project (MBSD), a groundbreaking effort to restore land loss, has officially been killed by the Landry administration.
