precipitation

January 9, 2024

Climate change bringing challenges for Superfund site cleanup

By Barbara Reina

US efforts to clean up toxins and protect communities from some of the nation’s most contaminated sites are getting more difficult as climate change brings increasingly abnormal weather events that make containing chemical waste more challenging, experts warn.

Fast and heavy rainfall, sea level rise, sinking land and the loss of natural coastal barriers are among the factors that open the way for repeated flooding that can create havoc on US efforts to contain hazardous waste at many Superfund sites.

“There are hundreds of contaminated Superfund sites across the country that are at risk of extreme coastal flooding” and becoming “compromised,” said Jacob Carter, a scientist at the Partnership for Policy Integrity, who previously worked at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “I expect that we will continue to see more sites compromised as climate change progresses.”

Carter co-authored a 2020 report projecting at least 800 Superfund sites would be at risk of extreme flooding by 2040, even under a low sea level rise scenario.

Since then, the frequency and intensity of extreme precipitation has been on the rise, according to the 2023 US Government Fifth National Climate Assessment. In 2022 alone, the US experienced 18 weather and climate disasters with damages exceeding $1 billion.

A 2023 report published by the American Chemical Society adds to concerns, projecting more than 400 potential sites in California that deal with hazardous waste – though not necessarily Superfund sites – will be threatened by a 1-in-100 year flood event due to sea level rise by the end of the century if climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions continue unabated.

Washed away
One ongoing example of the challenges is seen in the Dewey Loeffel Landfill Superfund site in Rensselaer County, New York, where the EPA has been working for years to deal with hazardous waste that includes cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBS). Regulators estimate more than 46,000 tons of waste were dumped at the 19-acre site decades ago, triggering fish and animal deaths and uncontrolled fires. Contamination spread to groundwater, soil, sediment and surface waters, according to the EPA.

“The impacts of climate change and extreme weather events are an important consideration in the Superfund process,” said Joe Battipaglia, remedial project manager for the Dewey Loeffel Superfund site.

November 2, 2022

A dire warning: California report documents climate impacts

By Pam Strayer

California is getting hotter and drier, and extreme weather events are increasingly disrupting the state’s natural environment and the lives of the nearly 40 million people who live there, according to a study released by state officials this week.

The 664-page report, compiled from research by more than 100 state scientists and experts, concludes that the state is experiencing a rapid decline in key indicators of ecosystem health related to climate change. The report identifies dozens of significant threats that could weaken California’s status as the fifth largest economy in the world, currently valued at $3.4 trillion.

“Across the state, we live the experience of extreme weather, deepening drought. and deadly wildfires and heatwaves,” said California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) Secretary Yana Garcia. “This report shows scientifically what we know from experience.”

Among the worrisome findings is the extent to which drought is taking a hold on the state. California has been getting drier since 1895 but by the end of the 2021 water year (which began in October 2020 and ended in September 2021), drought conditions were comparable to the most severe drought period on record, according to the report.

The period from 2000 to 2021 was the driest 22-year period over the past 1,000 years for California and much of the southwestern US, what scientists refer to an emerging “megadrought” era.

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November 2, 2022

Farmer safety net growing more costly as climate changes

As cool weather sets in to the US Midwest, much of the farm state of Iowa is suffering from moderate to severe drought, but for farmer Brent Drey, another worrisome weather trend is also top of mind: Over the past few decades, the Drey family farm has noticed an uptick in rainfall, which often comes down so hard and fast that the moisture actually does more harm than good.

“There are times, especially in the spring, where it can dump three or four inches in a matter of an hour or two,” Drey said. “That really makes a mess for any farmer.”

Drey Farms, which grows 3,000 acres of mostly corn and soybeans near Sac City, Iowa, has sometimes lost production due to excess moisture, according to Drey. Flooding, heavy rains and excess snow melt can complicate planting, and drown out or sicken maturing crops as wet conditions lead to elevated levels of mold, fungus, and toxins.

For Drey and other farmers who suffer production losses due to excess moisture, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has long offered a crop insurance program to cover their losses.