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3w ago

Scientific Societies Step In After National Climate Assessment Halted

Two major Earth science organizations launch a peer-reviewed project to preserve critical climate research following the Trump administration's dismissal of hundreds of scientists.

"Endangered West" by Taelyn B., is an award-winning contribution to the Fifth National Climate Assessment's art contest. The artist, an 11th grader from Boise, Idaho, wrote that "my drawing depicts 11 endangered species and their different ecosystems found in the Western United States. I hope viewers come away with an appreciation for our Western wild places and the importance of biodiversity and healthy ecosystems threatened by climate change and habitat loss."
An aerial view of Lake Powell is seen, where water levels have declined dramatically as growing demand for water and climate change shrink the Colorado River in Page, Arizona, U.S., November 19, 2022. REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs/ File Photo
FILE - Marquetta Wheeler, right, with Samaria Williams and Jemaria Shaw, walk through flood waters as they leave their home on Marietta Drive in Hopkinsville, Ky., April 4, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV, File)
FILE - John Milt places sandbags in preparation for flooding near the banks of the Cumberland River in Clarksville Tenn., Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo/George Walker IV, File)

Overview

  • The Trump administration dismissed nearly 400 scientists and halted work on the sixth National Climate Assessment, a congressionally mandated report on climate change impacts in the U.S.
  • The American Geophysical Union (AGU) and the American Meteorological Society (AMS) announced plans to compile a special collection of peer-reviewed studies to sustain the work of the NCA.
  • The new collection will feature research across 29 journals and aims to provide critical climate information for policymakers, businesses, and communities, though it will not replace the NCA.
  • The National Climate Assessment, required by the 1990 Global Change Research Act, synthesizes climate risks and adaptation strategies, playing a vital role in disaster preparedness and resilience planning.
  • Concerns remain over whether the administration will produce an alternative assessment or further diminish federal climate research capabilities.