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Aerial view of the National Petroleum Reserve in northwestern Alaska

The Biden Administration Protects Millions of Acres of Arctic Alaska

Latest NewsAlaskaJenny Shalant
The new Special Areas Rule in the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska could boost biodiversity and empower Indigenous Peoples to defend the lands they’ve relied on for generations.
Two adults and a child walk along a sandy shoreline

“Forever Chemicals” Called PFAS Show Up in Your Food, Clothes, and Home

ExplainerUnited StatesMolly M. Ginty, Courtney Lindwall
These toxic chemicals are so common in consumer products and manufacturing that they’re everywhere—including inside our bodies.
A river with green trees on either side, with yellow hills in the background

In Planning for Climate Change, Native Americans Draw on the Past

ExplainerUnited States, CanadaTim Vanderpool
Across North America, Indigenous tribes and nations are consulting their traditional ecological knowledge to help prepare for a warming world.

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More States Are Requiring Flood Disclosure

Expert BlogUnited StatesJoel Scata

New home buyers and renters should have a right to know a property’s flood history before they commit to calling it home. 

North Carolina Advances Right to Know Flood Disclosure

Expert BlogNorth CarolinaJoel Scata
Smart action by the North Carolina Real Estate Commission will empower home buyers to make fully informed decisions about where to live and how to best protect their families.

Undisclosed Flood Damage Financially Soaks Home Buyers

Expert BlogUnited StatesJoel Scata

Across the United States, the majority of states lack laws that require flood damages be fully disclosed to home buyers. The consequences can be financially ruinous to those who unwittingly purchase a flood-prone home.

Flood Protection Standard One-Year Later

Expert BlogUnited StatesJoel Scata

How and where the country’s public hospitals, roads, schools, seaports, and wastewater treatment plants are built must change to account for a warming world. 

FEMA Moves to Reform Flood Insurance Program

Expert BlogUnited StatesJoel Scata

FEMA has asked for public input on a wide array of potential reforms to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). If implemented, these suggested changes could transform the NFIP into the climate-informed flood program the nation desperately needs.

FEMA Restores Potentially Lifesaving Flood Standard

Expert BlogUnited StatesJoel Scata

The onslaught of Hurricane Ida—one of the strongest hurricanes to ever strike the U.S. mainland—has underscored the criticality of protecting the nation’s public infrastructure and more importantly, the lives of those who rely on it, from a more flood-prone future. 

Amendment Undermines Flood Protection by Local Communities

Expert BlogUnited StatesJoel Scata

Representative Garret Graves of Louisiana proposed an amendment to the Transportation and Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill that would have prohibited local communities from using federal funds to make their residents safer from flood disasters.

Build American Infrastructure for a 21st Century Climate

Expert BlogUnited StatesJoel Scata

Requiring a strong flood protection standard and application of the latest building codes for any federal infrastructure investments will help ensure those investments are safe for the people and communities who will rely on them

Flood Protection Standard Needed

Expert BlogUnited StatesJoel Scata
As the seas rise and rainstorms become more extreme, the time to require all federally funded infrastructure be prepared for the floods of the future is now.

Biden Reinstates Obama-Era Federal Flood Protection Standard

Expert BlogJoel Scata
In a sweeping Executive Order issued on the first day, President Biden reinstated the Obama-era Federal Flood Risk Management Standard. This flood protection standard had required federally funded infrastructure, like public housing, hospitals, fire stations, and water treatment plants, to…

Outdated Federal Flood Standards Put People at Risk

Expert BlogJoel Scata
NRDC and the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) petitioned the Federal Emergency Management Agency to update federal rules for building and land-use in the nation’s floodplains, and to develop flood maps that project future flood risks. As the seas…

After Laura, People Need Assistance to Reduce Vulnerability

Expert BlogJoel Scata
Hurricane Laura—one of the strongest storms on record to hit the United States—brought strong winds, heavy rain, and 12 to 18 feet of storm surge to parts of the Louisiana and Texas coasts. Many people in the five coastal parishes…

Realtor.com Now Tells Home Buyers a Property’s Flood Risk

Expert BlogJoel Scata
Homeowners, home buyers, and prospective renters deserve to know whether their dream home is at risk. Realtor.com’s decision to provide flood risk information for millions of properties helps address a major problem: property-specific flood data is notoriously hard to find.

FEMA Takes on COVID-19

Expert BlogJoel Scata
The COVID-19 pandemic’s unprecedented scale of economic, health, and social impacts in the United States has challenged traditional disaster management, requiring unconventional application of federal disaster laws.