California’s Fifth Climate Change Assessment, released by the state Oct. 19, draws from the best available science to assess the state’s climate future over the coming century.
It warns that California can expect rising temperatures, more precipitation variability, a shrinking snowpack, rising sea levels, more wildfire smoke exposure, transformed marine and coastal ecosystems, and significant economic impacts, especially across health and labor sectors.
Disadvantaged communities and California Native American tribes are expected to face disproportionate impacts from climate change even while tribes, in particular, are leading climate adaptation solutions.
Several UC Davis scientists are contributing authors of the report. They include Paul Ullrich and Rebecca R. Hernandez from the department of Land, Air and Water Resources; Alyssa Jean Griffin and Tessa Hill from Earth and Planetary Sciences; Mikaela Marie Provost from Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology; Malcolm North from Plant Sciences; and Susan Harrison and James Thorne from Environmental Science and Policy.
The report is designed to provide a foundation for informed climate action, emphasizing that “the future is not predetermined.”
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Kat Kerlin, UC Davis News and Media Relations, 530-750-9195, kekerlin@ucdavis.edu