A Congressional Watchdog Is Warning Washington to Prepare for Costly Climate Change

The U.S. federal government should adopt a strategy to manage climate change risks, as their cost to the government may rise as much as $35 billion per year by mid-century, a congressional watchdog office report released on Monday said. The report from the non-partisan Government Accountability Office comes as Congress weighs aid packages for U.S. victims of deadly hurricanes and wildfires that struck in 2017, with losses already estimated at more than $300 billion. President Donald Trump, a climate change doubter, rolled back Obama administration directives requiring federal agencies to prepare plans to address climate risks in March, and agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency have cut climate change research. The report was written at the request of Republican Senator Susan Collins and Democratic Senator Maria Cantwell, who asked for a comprehensive study on the costs and risks to the U.S. government from climate change in November 2015. “Climate change impacts are already costing the federal government money, and these costs will likely increase over time as the climate continues to change,” the report said. Extreme weather and fire events have cost the federal government over $350 billion over the last decade, the report said, citing the Office of Management and Budget. Preliminary government estimates of the economic losses of hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria and the wildfires in nine western states combined this year alone are poised to exceed $...
Source: TIME.com: Top Science and Health Stories - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Uncategorized climate change Disaster Environment onetime overnight Source Type: news