No place is safe: New national report on climate change details sweeping effects

A new national climate assessment paints a dismal picture of the nationwide impacts of climate change, driving food shortages, intensifying droughts, floods and wildfires, spreading diseases and air pollution and jeopardizing public infrastructure like roads and railways. 

The federal report, released today, ranked California among the top five states suffering economic effects from climate-related natural disasters. A chapter about the risks and effects in the Southwest contains a long and alarming list of projections, particularly the impact of drought on water supplies, agriculture, diseases and ecosystems.