We cannot afford to retreat

A message from President & CEO Dr. R. Max Holmes

In the early morning of July 4, the waters of the Guadalupe River in central Texas rose an astounding 35 feet in just two hours, washing away homes and vehicles and leaving hundreds—including dozens of children—missing or dead. I know this area, having lived not so far away decades ago.  

Officials and journalists are still working to determine what could have been done better or differently to save lives in Kerr County, but some key lessons are already becoming clear. First and foremost, climate change is making our weather more extreme and we must do everything in our power to slow, stop, and eventually reverse, the dangerous acceleration of warming. Secondly, every community in our country deserves to understand the escalating risks they face, to have the best possible forecasts and warnings in a timely manner, and to be supported in planning and building for resilience, as well as recovering from disasters. We honor those lost in Texas when we heed these lessons and work tirelessly to prevent other such tragedies.

This is work that we here at Woodwell Climate are engaged in daily on multiple levels. Our scientists have made seminal contributions to our understanding of how changes in our atmosphere are altering weather systems, and shared these insights with the public in thousands of news stories—including coverage of the Kerrville flood. Our project teams have partnered with more than 50 communities to directly address the need for climate risk assessments and support the resilience planning process. Our experts have briefed legislators and agency officials about the need for enhanced federal climate information services, and served on prestigious federal advisory panels that guide earth science and climate adaptation priorities. 

At a moment when the need for this work is painfully clear, it is dismaying to see what is being enacted in D.C., through both executive actions and now legislation, taking us in the opposite direction. Already, we have seen science advisory committees dissolved, key climate reports removed from public view, flagship science agencies hit hard by staffing cuts, and funding for climate adaptation projects (some informed by Woodwell’s work) revoked. 

The reconciliation package passed by Congress and signed into law ten days ago does even more damage by rescinding important IRA funding, including for NOAA research, community climate action planning, environmental and climate justice grants, and forest protection and ecosystem restoration. While the administration says they aim to restore a gold standard for science, these actions erode the quality and integrity of American science and reduce Americans’ access to important information and insights. 

In addition, this legislation will obstruct our ability to limit carbon emissions that are rapidly and dangerously warming our planet. While our own work at Woodwell Climate focuses primarily on nature-based climate solutions, we fully recognize that our lands and waters alone cannot bear the burden of our greenhouse gas emissions; it is imperative that we move toward low- or no-carbon energy, transportation, and industry as quickly as possible. The vast majority of Americans think clean energy should be a priority for our federal government and support the transition to a clean energy economy. In contrast, accelerating the phase-out of clean energy tax credits will make it immeasurably harder for renewable energy and electric vehicle innovators to advance this transition.

Together, these actions further endanger the public health and safety of countless communities across the country at a time when—more than ever before—they need their government to protect them from increasingly extreme weather and other climate risks. Put simply, this bill takes us backwards at the worst possible moment.

Kerrville. Los Angeles. North Carolina. The impacts of climate change are mounting—across the country, and around the globe. We cannot afford to retreat, and we will not. We will continue to push the boundaries of our understanding, to form partnerships where there have been divides, and together, forge the solutions so urgently needed. We owe it to those lost, to those still at risk, and to those yet to come. Thank you for all you continue to do to make it possible.

Onward,