Climate change affects each U.S. state

Web tool shows

How badly is climate change affecting your state? A new Web tool allows users to see how vulnerable their area has been to drought, flooding and heat extremes as well as the health problems that go along with them.

This tool, based in part on weather data gathered by the National Climatic Data Center and developed by the Natural Resources Defense Council, compares each state's temperatures from 2000 through 2009 with those from 1961 to 1990. Users can see, for example, that the western United States has recently had more days of extreme heat than in previous decades.

"Climate change is real and in many cases is already affecting people and natural ecosystems," said Kim Knowlton, senior scientist at NRDC, a private environmental group. "From the dangers of extreme heat and increased flooding to the spread of ragweed whose pollen causes allergies or mosquitoes that can spread disease, climate change does not discriminate and local communities need to be better prepared." read more>>>