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U.S. Regions
Related Links
Regional Information
U.S. Global Change Research Program
- Alaska
- Coasts
- Synthesis and Assessment Product 4.1: Coastal Sensitivity to Sea-Level Rise: A Focus on the Mid-Atlantic Region
- Synthesis and Assessment Product 4.7: Impacts of Climate Variability and Change on Transportation Systems and Infrastructure — Gulf Coast Study
- Great Plains
- Islands
- Midwest
- Northeast
- Northwest
- Southeast
- Southwest
- IPCC Working Group II Report: Fourth Assessment Report, Chapter 14 North America (PDF) (36 pp, 895K, About PDF)
In 2009, the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) produced a research report that focuses on the current and future impacts of climate change on the United States. The report concludes, among other findings, that climate changes in the United States are occurring now and are projected to grow in the future. These changes will likely place stress on the nation’s water supply and crop productivity, as well as increase risks to human health.
Below is a list of key impacts and vulnerabilities identified for each region of the United States:
Alaska:
- Longer summers and higher temperatures are causing drier conditions, even in the absence of strong trends in precipitation.
- Insect outbreaks and wildfires are increasing with warming.
- Lakes are declining in area.
- Coastal storms increase risks to villages and fishing fleets.
- Displacement of marine species will affect key fisheries.
- Thawing permafrost damages roads, runways, water and sewer systems, and other infrastructure.
Coasts:
- Significant sea-level rise and storm surge will adversely affect coastal cities and ecosystems around the nation; low-lying and subsiding areas are most vulnerable.
- More spring runoff and warmer coastal waters will increase the seasonal reduction in oxygen resulting from excess nitrogen from agriculture.
- Higher water temperatures and ocean acidification due to increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide will present major additional stresses to coral reefs, resulting in significant die-offs and limited recovery.
- Changing ocean currents will affect coastal ecosystems.
Great Plains:
- Projected increases in temperature, evaporation, and drought frequency add to concerns about the region’s declining water resources.
- Agriculture, ranching, and natural lands, already under pressure due to an increasingly limited water supply, are very likely to also be stressed by rising temperatures.
- Climate change is likely to affect native plant and animal species by altering key habitats such as the wetland ecosystems known as prairie potholes or playa lakes.
- Ongoing shifts in the region’s population from rural areas to urban centers will interact with a changing climate, resulting in a variety of consequences.
U.S. Islands:
- Island communities, infrastructure, and ecosystems are vulnerable to coastal inundation due to sea-level rise and coastal storms.
- The availability of freshwater is likely to be reduced, with significant implications for island communities, economies, and resources.
- Climate changes affecting coastal and marine ecosystems will have major implications for tourism and fisheries.
Midwest:
- During the summer, public health and quality of life, especially in cities, will be negatively affected by increasing heat waves, reduced air quality, and increasing insect and waterborne diseases. In the winter, warming will have mixed impacts.
- Significant reductions in Great Lakes water levels, which are projected under higher emissions scenarios, lead to impacts on shipping, infrastructure, beaches, and ecosystems.
- The likely increase in precipitation in winter and spring, more heavy downpours, and greater evaporation in summer would lead to more periods of both floods and water deficits.
- While the longer growing season provides the potential for increased crop yields, increases in heat waves, floods, droughts, insects, and weeds will present increasing challenges to managing crops, livestock, and forests.
- Native species are very likely to face increasing threats from rapidly changing climate conditions, pests, diseases, and invasive species moving in from warmer regions.
Northeast:
- Extreme heat and declining air quality are likely to pose increasing problems for human health, especially in urban areas.
- Agricultural production, including dairy, fruit, and maple syrup, are likely to be adversely affected as favorable climates shift.
- Severe flooding due to sea-level rise and heavy downpours is likely to occur more frequently.
- The center of lobster fisheries is projected to continue its northward shift and the cod fishery on Georges Bank is likely to be diminished.
- The projected reduction in snow cover will adversely affect winter recreation and the industries that rely upon it.
Northwest:
- Salmon and other coldwater species will experience additional stresses as a result of rising water temperatures and declining summer streamflows.
- Sea-level rise along vulnerable coastlines will result in increased erosion and the loss of land.
- Declining springtime snowpack leads to reduced summer streamflows, straining water supplies.
- Increased insect outbreaks, wildfires, and changing species composition in forests will pose challenges for ecosystems and the forest products industry.
Southeast:
- Projected increases in air and water temperatures will cause heat-related stresses for people, plants, and animals.
- Decreased water availability is very likely to affect the region’s economy as well as its natural systems.
- Sea-level rise and the likely increase in hurricane intensity and associated storm surge will be among the most serious consequences of climate change.
- Ecological thresholds are likely to be crossed throughout the region, causing major disruptions to ecosystems and to the benefits they provide to people.
- Quality of life will be affected by increasing heat stress, water scarcity, severe weather events, and reduced availability of insurance for at-risk properties.
Southwest:
- Water supplies will become increasingly scarce, calling for tradeoffs among competing uses, and potentially leading to conflict.
- Increasing temperature, drought, wildfire, and invasive species will accelerate transformation of the landscape.
- Increased frequency and altered timing of flooding will increase risks to people, ecosystems, and infrastructure.
- Unique tourism and recreation opportunities are likely to suffer.
- Cities and agriculture face increasing risks from a changing climate.