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caption: 'This map shows climate-related impacts that have occurred in each region since the Third National Climate Assessment in 2014 and response actions that are helping the region address related risks and costs. These examples are illustrative; they are not indicative of which impact is most significant in each region or which response action might be most effective. Source: NCA4 Regional Chapters.'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-04-09T18:52:15
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/overview_regional-impacts-and-actions_v1.yaml
identifier: overview_regional-impacts-and-actions_v1
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ordinal: 1
report_identifier: nca4
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submission_dt: 2018-11-27T16:10:24
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title: Impacts & Responses
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/overview_regional-impacts-and-actions_v1
url: ~
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caption: 'Increasing heavy rains are leading to more soil erosion and nutrient loss on midwestern cropland. Integrating strips of native prairie vegetation into row crops has been shown to reduce soil and nutrient loss while improving biodiversity. The inset shows a close-up example of a prairie vegetation strip. From Figure 21.2, Ch. 21: Midwest (Photo credits: [main photo] Lynn Betts; [inset] Farnaz Kordbacheh).'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-05-01T12:33:24
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/prairie-strips.yaml
identifier: prairie-strips
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ordinal: 10
report_identifier: nca4
source_citation: ~
submission_dt: 2018-11-27T16:10:26
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title: Prairie Strips
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/prairie-strips
url: ~
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- attributes: ~
caption: 'Soybeans in Texas experience the effects of drought in August 2013. During 2010–2015, a multiyear regional drought severely affected agriculture in the Southern Great Plains. One prominent impact was the reduction of irrigation water released for farmers on the Texas coastal plains. Photo credit: Bob Nichols, USDA.'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-04-20T18:44:48
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/soybeans-impacted-by-drought-near-navasota--texas.yaml
identifier: soybeans-impacted-by-drought-near-navasota--texas
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ordinal: 11
report_identifier: nca4
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submission_dt: 2018-11-27T16:10:26
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title: Soybeans
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/soybeans-impacted-by-drought-near-navasota--texas
url: ~
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caption: 'Desalination activities in Texas are an important contributor to the state’s efforts to meet current and projected water needs for communities, industry, and agriculture. The state’s 2017 Water Plan recommended an expansion of desalination to help reduce longer-term risks to water supplies from drought, higher temperatures, and other stressors. There are currently 44 public water supply desalination plants in Texas. From Figure 23.8, Ch. 23: S. Great Plains (Source: adapted from Texas Water Development Board 2017).'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-05-01T18:59:26
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/texas-desalination-plants-ch1.yaml
identifier: texas-desalination-plants-ch1
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ordinal: 12
report_identifier: nca4
source_citation: ~
submission_dt: 2018-11-27T16:10:28
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title: Texas Desalination Plants
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/texas-desalination-plants-ch1
url: ~
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- attributes: ~
caption: 'Razor clamming draws crowds on the coast of Washington State. This popular recreation activity is expected to decline due to ocean acidification, harmful algal blooms, warmer temperatures, and habitat degradation. From Figure 24.7, Ch. 24: Northwest (Photo courtesy of Vera Trainer, NOAA).'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-05-01T19:05:27
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/razor-clamming.yaml
identifier: razor-clamming
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ordinal: 13
report_identifier: nca4
source_citation: ~
submission_dt: 2018-11-27T16:10:29
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title: Razor Clamming
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/razor-clamming
url: ~
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- attributes: ~
caption: 'The figure shows the years when severe coral bleaching is projected to occur annually in the Hawaiʻi and U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands region under a higher scenario (RCP8.5). Darker colors indicate earlier projected onset of coral bleaching. Under projected warming of approximately 0.5°F per decade, all nearshore coral reefs in the region will experience annual bleaching before 2050. From Figure 27.10, Ch. 27: Hawai‘i & Pacific Islands (Source: NOAA).'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-04-20T16:19:08
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/overview_severe-coral-bleaching_v4.yaml
identifier: overview_severe-coral-bleaching_v4
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ordinal: 14
report_identifier: nca4
source_citation: ~
submission_dt: 2018-11-27T16:10:30
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title: Overview_severe coral bleaching_v4
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/overview_severe-coral-bleaching_v4
url: ~
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caption: 'Examples of coral farming in the U.S. Caribbean and Florida demonstrate different types of structures used for growing fragments from branching corals. Coral farming is a strategy meant to improve the reef community and ecosystem function, including for fish species. The U.S. Caribbean Islands, Florida, Hawai‘i, and the U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands face similar threats from coral bleaching and mortality due to warming ocean surface waters and ocean acidification. Degradation of coral reefs is expected to negatively affect fisheries and the economies that depend on them as habitat is lost in both regions. While coral farming may provide some targeted recovery, current knowledge and efforts are not nearly advanced enough to compensate for projected losses from bleaching and acidification. From Figure 20.11, Ch. 20: U.S. Caribbean (Photo credits: [top left] Carlos Pacheco, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; [bottom left] NOAA; [right] Florida Fish and Wildlife).'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-05-01T19:10:41
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/promoting-reef-recovery.yaml
identifier: promoting-reef-recovery
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ordinal: 15
report_identifier: nca4
source_citation: ~
submission_dt: 2018-11-27T16:10:31
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title: Promoting Reef Recovery
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/promoting-reef-recovery
url: ~
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caption: '(left) The chart shows the average annual number of days above 100°F in Phoenix, Arizona, for 1976–2005, and projections of the average number of days per year above 100°F through the end of the 21st century (2070–2099) under the lower (RCP4.5) and higher (RCP8.5) scenarios. Dashed lines represent the 5th–95th percentile range of annual observed values. Solid lines represent the 5th–95th percentile range of projected model values. (right) The map shows hydration stations and cooling refuges (cooled indoor locations that provide water and refuge from the heat during the day) in Phoenix in August 2017. Such response measures for high heat events are expected to be needed at greater scales in the coming years if the adverse health effects of more frequent and severe heat waves are to be minimized. Sources: (left) NOAA NCEI, CICS-NC, and LMI; (right) adapted from Southwest Cities Heat Refuges (a project by Arizona State University’s Resilient Infrastructure Lab), available [here](http://www.coolme.today/#phoenix). Data provided by Andrew Fraser and Mikhail Chester, Arizona State University.'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-04-20T18:58:12
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/impacts-and-actions-due-to-heat-in-phoenix--arizona.yaml
identifier: impacts-and-actions-due-to-heat-in-phoenix--arizona
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ordinal: 16
report_identifier: nca4
source_citation: ~
submission_dt: 2018-12-03T19:06:38
time_end: ~
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title: 'Projected Change in Very Hot Days by 2100 in Phoenix, Arizona'
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/impacts-and-actions-due-to-heat-in-phoenix--arizona
url: ~
usage_limits: Figure may be copyright protected and permission may be required. Contact original figure source for information
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caption: '(left) A federal grant is being used to relocate the tribal community of Isle de Jean Charles, Louisiana, in response to severe land loss, sea level rise, and coastal flooding. From Figure 15.3, Ch. 15: Tribes (Photo credit: Ronald Stine). (right) As part of the resettlement of the tribal community of Isle de Jean Charles, residents are working with the Lowlander Center and the State of Louisiana to finalize a plan that reflects the desires of the community. From Figure 15.4, Ch. 15: Tribes (Photo provided by Louisiana Office of Community Development).'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-04-23T19:45:54
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/isle-de-jean-charles-community-relocation.yaml
identifier: isle-de-jean-charles-community-relocation
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ordinal: 17
report_identifier: nca4
source_citation: ~
submission_dt: 2018-11-27T16:10:33
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title: Isle de Jean Charles Community Relocation
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/isle-de-jean-charles-community-relocation
url: ~
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caption: "A rock revetment was installed in the Alaska Native Village of Kivalina in 2010 to reduce increasing risks from erosion. A new rock revetment wall has a projected lifespan of 15 to 20 years. From Figure 15.3, Ch. 15: Tribes (Photo credit: ShoreZone. Creative Commons License CC BY 3.0). The inset shows a close-up of the rock wall in 2011. Photo credit: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers–Alaska District."
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2018-05-01T12:48:24
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/adaptation-measures-in-kivalina--ak.yaml
identifier: adaptation-measures-in-kivalina--ak
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ordinal: 18
report_identifier: nca4
source_citation: ~
submission_dt: 2018-11-27T16:10:35
time_end: ~
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title: 'Adaptation Measures in Kivalina, AK'
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/adaptation-measures-in-kivalina--ak
url: ~
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caption: '(a) The map shows the number of mitigation-related activities at the state level (out of 30 illustrative activities) as well as cities supporting emissions reductions; (b) the chart depicts the type and number of activities by state. Several territories also have a variety of mitigation-related activities, including American Sāmoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. From Figure 29.1, Ch. 29: Mitigation (Sources: [a] EPA and ERT, Inc. [b] adapted from America’s Pledge 2017).'
chapter_identifier: overview-executive-summary
create_dt: 2017-10-27T19:56:48
href: https://data.globalchange.gov/report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/state_and_local_mitigation_and_clean_energy_policies.yaml
identifier: state_and_local_mitigation_and_clean_energy_policies
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ordinal: 19
report_identifier: nca4
source_citation: ~
submission_dt: 2018-11-29T16:12:51
time_end: ~
time_start: ~
title: Mitigation-Related Activities at State and Local Levels
uri: /report/nca4/chapter/overview-executive-summary/figure/state_and_local_mitigation_and_clean_energy_policies
url: ~
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caption: "Long-term observations demonstrate the warming trend in the climate system and the effects of increasing atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations (Ch. 2: Climate, Box 2.2). This figure shows climate-relevant indicators of change based on data collected across the United States. Upward-pointing arrows indicate an increasing trend; downward-pointing arrows indicate a decreasing trend. Bidirectional arrows (e.g., for drought conditions) indicate a lack of a definitive national trend.
Atmosphere (a–c): (a) Annual average temperatures have increased by 1.8°F across the contiguous United States since the beginning of the 20th century; this figure shows observed change for 1986–2016 (relative to 1901–1960 for the contiguous United States and 1925–1960 for Alaska, Hawai‘i, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Alaska is warming faster than any other state and has warmed twice as fast as the global average since the mid-20th century (Ch. 2: Climate, KM 5; Ch. 26: Alaska, Background). (b) The season length of heat waves in many U.S. cities has increased by over 40 days since the 1960s. Hatched bars indicate partially complete decadal data. \\(c) The relative amount of annual rainfall that comes from large, single-day precipitation events has changed over the past century; since 1910, a larger percentage of land area in the contiguous United States receives precipitation in the form of these intense single-day events.
Ice, snow, and water (d–f): (d) Large declines in snowpack in the western United States occurred from 1955 to 2016. (e) While there are a number of ways to measure drought, there is currently no detectable change in long-term U.S. drought statistics using the Palmer Drought Severity Index. (f) Since the early 1980s, the annual minimum sea ice extent (observed in September each year) in the Arctic Ocean has decreased at a rate of 11%–16% per decade (Ch. 2: Climate, KM 7).
Oceans and coasts (g–i): (g) Annual median sea level along the U.S. coast (with land motion removed) has increased by about 9 inches since the early 20th century as oceans have warmed and land ice has melted (Ch. 2: Climate, KM 4). (h) Fish, shellfish, and other marine species along the Northeast coast and in the eastern Bering Sea have, on average, moved northward and to greater depths toward cooler waters since the early 1980s (records start in 1982). (i) Oceans are also currently absorbing more than a quarter of the carbon dioxide emitted to the atmosphere annually by human activities, increasing their acidity (measured by lower pH values; Ch. 2: Climate, KM 3).
Land and ecosystems (j–l): (j) The average length of the growing season has increased across the contiguous United States since the early 20th century, meaning that, on average, the last spring frost occurs earlier and the first fall frost arrives later; this map shows changes in growing season length at the state level from 1895 to 2016. (k) Warmer and drier conditions have contributed to an increase in large forest fires in the western United States and Interior Alaska over the past several decades (CSSR, Ch. 8.3). (l) Degree days are defined as the number of degrees by which the average daily temperature is higher than 65°F (cooling degree days) or lower than 65°F (heating degree days) and are used as a proxy for energy demands for cooling or heating buildings. Changes in temperatures indicate that heating needs have decreased and cooling needs have increased in the contiguous United States over the past century.
Sources: (a) adapted from Vose et al. 2017, (b) EPA, (c–f and h–l) adapted from EPA 2016, (g and center infographic) EPA and NOAA.
The interactive version of this figure was revised in June 2019. See Errata for details: https://nca2018.globalchange.gov/downloads