Climate Change

Smokes rises from the Whitewater-Baldy wildfire burning in the Gila Wilderness of southern New Mexico.
Huge gaps between air quality sensors in the western U.S. have created blind spots in the warning system for wildfire smoke plumes sweeping North America this summer.
Aug. 27, 2021
drought improvement
At the start of this year, nearly three-quarters of Arizona was in an exceptional drought, the U.S. Drought monitor’s most severe category. Now, less than 1% of the state is at that level.
Aug. 27, 2021
The Arizona sun behind a palm tree
A new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists finds the effects of rising temperatures could have negative effects on the labor market, putting $2.5 billion of earnings are at risk in Arizona alone.
Aug. 26, 2021
SRP building
Salt River Project will seek approval from its governing board to expand its Coolidge Generating Station, but conservationists have questions about the plan.
Aug. 25, 2021
The south Scottsdale where storm runoff through greenbelt passes under Mckellips Road
One wet summer in Arizona is not going to be nearly enough to reverse the effects of the decades-long drought the region is facing. But there has been some incremental improvement.
Aug. 25, 2021
After two decades of drought, reservoirs on the Colorado River are depleted, and the federal government has declared a water shortage, which will trigger cutbacks. Central Arizona farmers will bear the brunt of those cutbacks.
Aug. 20, 2021
phoenix wash
In this year’s monsoon series, we’re looking at how climate change meets the monsoon, and what that could mean for our environment, growth, traditions and identity.
Aug. 20, 2021
This week, the federal government declared a Tier 1 shortage on the Colorado River for the first time in history. But the city of Phoenix says it is built for drought — and ready for that future.
More Water Coverage
Aug. 19, 2021
tall building
Several cities across Arizona have announced efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in an effort to curb the impact of climate change. And UA assistant professor Jonathan Bean says this conversation needs to expand from focusing on modes of transportation to include the buildings we’re in.
Aug. 18, 2021
The below-grade Papago Freeway in central Phoenix, built on what used to be Moreland and Culver streets.
With the Senate's passage of a physical infrastructure bill, Congress will now take up a broader infrastructure bill.
Aug. 11, 2021
Raúl Grijalva
A recent report on climate change says the problem has reached a crisis level and will have consequences for billions of people.
Aug. 10, 2021
Middle Fire Arizona
New research looked at one watershed in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in eastern California to see how climate change interacts with plants and the other vegetation that can become fuel for wildfires.
Aug. 10, 2021
Antelope Point Public Launch Ramp at Lake Powell
Low water levels at Lake Powell have made launching a houseboat nearly impossible, but there is plenty of opportunity for recreation at the lake. Park Superintendent William Shott says that In spite of the drought, the lake has plenty of water and thousands of miles of shoreline to explore.
Aug. 9, 2021
The Arizona sun behind a palm tree
Heat waves over the West, the continued depletion of the Colorado River Basin, and the second worst drought in the last 1,200 years — in the recent U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report, experts say with increased confidence that these phenomena are linked to humans.
Aug. 9, 2021
The "Earth thermometer" sculpture
Hundreds of companies have signed onto letters to government leaders, encouraging them to take action on climate change. The letters to President Joe Biden, Gov. Doug Ducey, Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly and others urge a goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% below 2005 levels by the end of the decade.
Aug. 9, 2021
man using backhoe
A trade group representing contractors launched a new initiative Tuesday to push for more environmentally friendly construction.
Aug. 3, 2021
Navajo Nation
The largest Native American reservation in the U.S. is continuing to struggle with drought conditions. The majority of the Navajo Nation is in extreme or exceptional drought.
Jul. 20, 2021
The flash flood that carried a Prius down a Flagstaff street reached the size of a 100-year flood event, according to Coconino County officials. Another 100-year flood happened in the same area in 2018. That frequency has climate scientists alarmed.
More Climate Change Coverage
Jul. 20, 2021
Sonoran Solar
Working with state leaders, Mexico plans to build the world’s eighth-largest solar farm in neighboring Sonora that’s expected to be up and running by the end of 2023.
Jul. 19, 2021
The Arizona sun behind a palm tree
President Joe Biden has brought the U.S. back into the Paris Climate Agreement, and there are efforts to reduce carbon emissions in an effort to slow climate change. But climate scientist Kimberly Nicholas says we all have a part to play in that.
Jul. 16, 2021

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