Disasters

"Fed Researcher Warns Climate Change Could Spur Financial Crisis"

"Climate change is becoming increasingly relevant to central bankers because losses from natural disasters that are magnified by higher temperatures and elevated sea levels could spark a financial crisis, a Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco researcher found."

Source: Bloomberg, 03/26/2019

"Flooding Impairs Drinking Water Treatment For Kansas City, Missouri"

"Record flooding along the Missouri River has impaired treatment of drinking supplies in Kansas City, raising health risks for infants, the elderly and others with compromised immune systems, the municipal water service warned on Saturday."

Source: Reuters, 03/25/2019

Dams to Tame a Swelling River May Be Outmatched by Climate Change

"Along the Missouri, John Remus controls a network of dams that dictates the fate of millions. ‘It was not designed to handle this.’"

"There were no good choices for John Remus, yet he had to choose.

Should he try to hold back the surging Missouri River but risk destroying a major dam, potentially releasing a 45-foot wall of water? Or should he relieve the pressure by opening the spillway, purposefully adding to the flooding of towns, homes and farmland for hundreds of miles.

Source: NY Times, 03/22/2019

Deer Park Fire Investigations Begin Amid Fear Over Emissions, Pollution

"The U.S. Chemical Safety Board on Wednesday announced it would investigate the three-day chemical blaze at the International Terminals Co., hours after emissions of carcinogenic benzene spiked near the Deer Park plant, prompting city officials to order residents to shelter in place for most of the morning."

Source: Houston Chronicle, 03/22/2019

Military Knew Flood Risks at Offutt Air Base, But Didn’t Act in Time

"For several years, the U.S. military and federal and local officials knew that Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska lay exposed to the threat of catastrophic flooding. But a key federal agency moved too slowly to approve plans to protect the base from last weekend's deluge, a top local official said."

Source: InsideClimate News, 03/22/2019

"Miner Vale Quashed Dam Safety Audit Efforts Before Brazil Disaster"

"Executives at Vale SA, the world’s largest iron ore miner, quashed efforts by Brazilian authorities to audit one of the company’s mining dams months before it collapsed and killed over 300 people, a state prosecutor was quoted as saying by news website G1 on Wednesday."

Source: Reuters, 03/21/2019

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