Climate Capabilities - Reducing Risk from Extreme Events

Climate plays an important role in where plants, animals, and humans can thrive. As the global climate changes, it threatens the safety and well-being of our communities, our economy, and our natural heritage. The USGS investigates the causes and consequences of climate change and helps people create strategies to navigate this global crisis.

Climate change can pose a variety of hazards both to human-built and natural environments. Climate change alters weather patterns and can create extreme conditions such as intense wildfires and more frequent storms that ecosystems and the communities are not always prepared for. These events create cascading conditions that can be destructive and hazardous to society, natural resources, and economies. The USGS is uniquely positioned to provide natural resource and community managers tools to prepare for, respond to, and recover from extreme, climate-driven events that impact the nation from mountains to coasts.