Go Green Kids Worldwide, Inc. by GGK MEDIA

June 2022

Go Green

kids & parents

MAGAZINE

Contents 3

5 tips to help you make your dream garden a reality

How pet owners can make a di erence when it comes to recycling

6 Pretty, portable pollinator gardens: Top 10 plants for pollinator-friendly containers

Bison Pastrami, Anyone? Preschool Assistant Makes Sure Kids Get to Know Indigenous Foods

24-27 9 Top energy actions you can take to help with climate change

11 Going green isn't easy: 3 challenges farmers face with organic farming ff

You Need To Know This Month Fruit Flower Endangered Green initiative

30 Grim Drought 2022

Go green kids & Parents Magazine

Publisher Ggk Media https://www.gogreenkidz.org www.ggkchange.org https://issuu.com/gogreenkp charlene3w2@gmail.com gogreenkidsandparents@gmail.com

Editor

Charlene Alvarez

Graphic Design

Aaron Steven

Regional Manager Louis Catalina

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5 tips to help you make your dream garden a reality

BPT) - Gard(ening has become a very popular pastime over the past two years, and that trend shows no sign of slowing down. According to last year's Axiom Gardening Insights Survey, 62% of respondents said they will plant even more in 2022. Whether you're one of the many who plan to expand your garden or it's your rst attempt, there are plenty of tools and resources available to help you succeed. It's the perfect time to dream of warmer days - and gardening. Developing a concrete plan can help you make your dream become a reality. Here are steps to help determine what you want from your garden. 1) Figure out your gardening goals You could have more than one motivation for gardening, ranging from just enjoying being outdoors to speci c results. Your reasons might include: * Growing veggies, fruits and herbs you can eat or use in cooking * Boosting your home's curb appeal with beautiful owers * Attracting butter ies and bees with a pollinator garden * Creating a pretty backyard sanctuary Determining which goal is most important to you can help you make choices about what and where to plant.

3 2) Utilize help getting started

Enlist family members or friends to share tasks like planting, watering, weeding and fertilizing. Gardening is a great hobby for all ages, and children can have fun learning about nature from planting things and watching them grow. One easy way to get started is with Ferry-Morse Plantlings: live healthy baby plants delivered from the nursery directly to your door. With over 100 varieties of herb, vegetable, shrub, tree and ower Plantings available, ready-to-plant seedlings are an easy way to get the summer growing season started. Planting's are a popular option to begin your gardening early, with established root systems that will yield a healthier garden - and leave you with a shorter to-do list come planting time. 3) Know your space and time limitations It's easy to be overwhelmed by all the amazing available choices, especially when you're new to gardening. But even homes with limited space can bene t from the beauty of plants or owers in a planter, window box or raised garden bed. Choose low-maintenance plants and owers to save on time. Consider using what you already have to maximize your e orts - are there owers and plants you already love in your yard? You could space them out if they are spreading varieties, moving some to other areas of your yard. Look up which plants need more sun or shade, so you know they'll thrive where you transplant them. Yearning to start growing indoors before the season begins? Ji y Peat Pellets can help you get your seeds o to a healthy start and establish root systems so your seedlings are ready to be planted directly into the ground at the start of the season. 4) Know your zone Learn what plants are native to your geographical zone and hardiest where you live before purchasing seeds or Planting's. Learning the best times to plant speci c species will also help your gardening e orts succeed. Your local agricultural extension o ce is a wonderful source of information on what plants grow best in your area. 5) Know your level of expertise Gardening rookie? You'll enjoy your e orts even more if you limit the number of varieties you plant. Focus on just a few at a time, then expand what you plant later in the year, or next year. Even if you're an experienced gardener, it still helps to have a list of goals. Don't feel you have to do it all at once. To enjoy watching your garden transform its beauty throughout the growing season, plan for some early blooming plants, then arrange for di erent areas of your garden to feature mid-summer or late-blooming owers. "Gardening is something anyone can enjoy, at any level of expertise, no matter how much space you have," said Rebecca Sears, chief gardening guru for Ferry-Morse. "Start with a few plants or owers you love and learn what you can about them. There's nothing more satisfying than watching your garden grow and thrive." Visit FerryMorse.com for everything you need to get started, plus tips and resources to help you enjoy your garden more than ever this year.

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www.lanabambini.co.uk

We’re not perfect. We know that our business activity – from shipping products to keeping the lights on – creates carbon emissions as a by-product and we work progressively to reduce those impacts. We believe in being transparent with regards to our challenges and successes

"Pollinator gardens provide food for bees, butter ies, moths, wasps and other helpful species," says Diane Blazek, Executive Director at National Garden Bureau (NGB). "In turn, they pollinate the vegetables that produce our food. They really are essential. That's why it is important for everyone to do their part."

Pretty, portable pollinator gardens: Top 10 plants for pollinatorfriendly containers

You don't have to devote a large space to pollinators to make a di erence. Container gardens are a great way to provide the food sources that pollinators need to thrive. Having movable containers can also come in very handy if you want to move your pollinator gardens from space to space. Let's say you really want to attract bees but have company coming and there is a concern about the nearness of your beloved bees. It is easy to move the containers to another area of your garden for the duration of that visit! Or you have hummingbird-attracting plants and want to move them so you can watch them at work from the comfort of your home. Simply move them to be visible from inside! Customize your blend

A diverse selection of plants attracts a diverse range of pollinators. Di erent ower colors attract di erent pollinators but adding various ower shapes and forms is also important. Butter ies like ower clusters with at, open blooms like yarrow, cone ower, and zinnia. Hummingbirds like the tubular ower types such as penstemon, cuphea and salvia. Bees and wasps prefer di erent types of owers depending on their tongue length. There are so many beautiful pollinator-friendly plant choices, the container combinations are endless. Here are a few to get your pollinator containers growing. "National Garden Bureau chose Verbena as our Annual of the Year and Phlox as our Perennial of the Year for 2022, due in part to their popularity with pollinators," says Blazek. "Both Phlox and Verbena are beautiful, easy-to-grow owers that are available in a wide variety of colors." Compact Garden Phlox look stunning in larger containers while ground-cover types create a cascade of early spring owers for pollinators to feed on. Heat-loving Verbena are available in mounding or trailing types that can be container centerpieces or softening accent plants. Cone owers, or echinacea, provide a summer pollinator food source, then a fall/winter seed source, for the birds. Compact varieties can be a wonderful addition to smaller containers, while taller types serve as the focal point of the container. Since Cone owers come in many color choices, you're sure to nd one to work with your color scheme.

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(BPT) - Bees, birds, butter ies, and other pollinators play an important role in our global ecosystem. In fact, they are essential. By transporting pollen from one plant to another, they make growing the food we eat and the beautiful garden spaces we enjoy possible. One of the easiest ways to support a healthy growing environment is to plant a diverse selection of plants, making sure to include the types of blooms that various pollinators love.

Sedum owers late summer and early fall, providing a food source at a time when fewer oral resources are available. Look for Back in Black Sedum, an NGB Green Thumb Award winner, as a great addition to your fall pollinator garden. The tall, spikey blooms of both annual and perennial Salvia are naturals in any pollinator garden. Extremely easy to grow, and available in several di erent colors and species, they look beautiful in containers all on their own. One new salvia, also a winner of the NGB Green Thumb Award, is Hummingbird Falls and guess what, it is a hummingbird magnet! As its name suggests, Bee Balm, or monarda, is a proven feast for bees. Colorful, pompom shaped blooms planted in containers capture the attention of both pollinators and humans. The beautiful blooms of lavender are a big draw for pollinators, while the scent provides a welcome and calming invitation for all visitors to linger in the garden. Sun owers now come in compact sizes that are perfect for containers. Choose from bushy, reblooming types or dwarf types, both of which can be used in patio pots. If you're looking for a drought-tolerant, pollinator-friendly plant, Lantana is a good choice. Spreading varieties in a vast array of warm colors look great spilling over the edges of containers. With its airy texture, Coreopsis is another excellent choice for pollinator containers. Bright-colored blooms are especially attractive to butter ies. Container tips Don't forget to water! Container gardens will dry out faster than landscape plantings, so water more frequently to keep the soil evenly moist. For almost care-free gardening, consider using self-watering containers. Simply keep the water-holding reservoirs at capacity and your plants will be watered as needed. In addition to a large selection of ower colors and textures, pollinators are attracted to blooms at varying heights. Place your containers on decorative plant stands to elevate containers for a pleasing design. Need additional information on attracting pollinators to the garden? Visit National Garden Bureau online here: https://ngb.org/2022/05/04/portable-pollinator-gardens/.

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Top energy actions you can take to help with climate change

(BPT) - You've probably heard a lot about climate change, but it can be di cult to know what you can do to help. As one person, you do have the power to make a positive impact on the health of the planet and a great place to start is by looking at the energy choices you make at home. Communities around the country have begun the transition to a clean energy future. More and more of the electricity used is being generated from clean, renewable sources instead of fossil fuels, which pollute the air and contribute to climate change. Protecting the planet is important, not just on Earth Day, but every day. You and your family can be part of the solution by using energy wisely. Make a plan to make your energy choices count, and you can feel good about supporting a healthier climate and saving money on your energy bills.

Here are three big-impact energy steps to consider: 1. Save energy with ENERGY STAR Products that earn the ENERGY STAR label are independently certi ed to save energy and help protect the climate. Using less energy saves you money on household energy bills, while reducing your overall carbon footprint. By being more e cient and making choices to use less energy, you're helping support a complete transition to clean, renewable energy.

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2. Switch to green power By choosing to use electricity generated by renewables such as wind and solar instead of polluting fossil fuels, you will be supporting a cleaner energy supply and making a di erence in the ght against climate change. Take advantage of opportunities in your community to choose green power as the energy source for your home.

* Clean and e cient heating and cooling with a certi ed air source heat pump * Super-e cient hot water with a certi ed heat pump water heater * Smart climate controls with a certi ed smart thermostat * High-performing Energy Star certi ed windows and storm windows

3. Be part of the clean energy future * A well-insulated and sealed attic The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently launched the ENERGY STAR Home Upgrade, an initiative that guides homeowners through a series of high-impact, energy-e cient improvements for the home that can save the average family about $500 a year on utility bills. You can choose the improvements that make the most sense for your home and implement them at your own pace. The upgrade includes:

* Making your home electric vehicle charger ready Taking these steps will help you make high-impact choices to improve your home and the health of the planet. They can also help you transition from fossil fuels to a cleaner, healthier and more comfortable home. Learn more at EnergyStar.gov/EarthDay.

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Going green isn't easy: 3 challenges farmers face with organic farming

(BPT) -

Organic production represents less than 1% of U.S. crop acres, but according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the demand for organics is rising. As a result, many farms are adding organic acreage to their farming operations. "Consumer demand for more organic vegetables has driven our company in that direction," says Adrian Garcia, an inhouse pest control adviser with Braga Fresh Family Farms. For Burkey Farms, the decision was purely economic. "We looked pretty smart when we sold organic corn for $9 per bushel, and conventional corn was at $3.10," said Eric Thalken, operations manager. Organic farming can be pro table, but there are still several obstacles to widespread adoption. Below are three signi cant challenges facing organic farmers. 1. Pest and weed control Weed, disease and insect control are shared challenges for organic growers. They have limited pesticide options because they can only use those approved by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI). Some producers like Burkey farms use biological practices like cover crops that prevent soil erosion, increase soil quality, suppress weed growth, prevent disease and manage pests. Organic farms may also use mechanical weed control, though that requires two cultivations and two passes with a rotary hose. In rainy years, weeds can still get the upper hand .At Braga Fresh Family Farms, in-season weed control is often by hand. Over the past three years, the farm began to rely on robotic weeding machines to save labor and remove weeds more e ectively. To control pests, the farm has purchased thousands of bene cial insects - including parasitic wasps, lacewings and Aphidoletes - that are released into the eld by a drone. They then reproduce and feed on harmful pests. While these strategies work well in the West, it's nearly impossible to keep ahead of constant pest pressure in tropical climates where it rains most afternoons. Hot, humid weather fosters insect reproduction, weed growth and fungal diseases. Biopesticides can be used, but they need to be applied almost daily, increasing costs for farmers.

While these strategies work well in the West, it's nearly impossible to keep ahead of constant pest pressure in tropical climates where it rains most afternoons. Hot, humid weather fosters insect reproduction, weed growth and fungal diseases. Biopesticides can be used, but they need to be applied almost daily, increasing costs for farmers. 2. Shrinking yields and growing costs Despite strides to improve organic tools and practices, yields still lag. USDA data from 2016 show conventional crops out-yielded organics for every U.S. crop except forages. "We spend less on crop seed, fertility and chemicals but more on equipment, labor and cover crops than an average farm in our area," Thalken says. "Overhead can be slightly more with increased costs of administration." Production costs for organic agriculture can vary widely. In California, Garcia estimates that costs to grow organic vegetables are 20%-25% higher than non-organic, due to added pest control steps and higher labor costs. Fertilization is a major variable. Commercial organic fertilizer is expensive, and it's challenging to reach the necessary nitrogen levels needed for farming. Burkey Farms saves on fertilizer costs by applying hog manure. As with conventional crop producers who rely on manure for fertilizer, there is a risk of damaging the buildup of sodium and potassium in the soil. 3. Environmental impacts The environmental impacts of agricultural production vary by practice. With lower yields, organic production requires more land to generate the same amount of food. According to a 2016 analysis of USDA yield data, if all crops switched to organic production, more than 100 million more farmland acres - an area the size of California - would be needed to achieve the same crop output. OMRI-approved pesticides have impacts, too. Organic farmers commonly use copper sulfate as a fungicide. Although a natural compound, copper sulfate can accumulate in the soil and harm soil microbes, according to the Genetic Literacy Project. The multiple passes for weed control in organic production consume more fuel and increase soil compaction. Disturbing the ground with mechanical weed control also can erode soil and damage soil health. Whether growing crops conventionally or organically, all farmers share in meeting expectations for sustainable food production. "At the end of the day, the population is growing," said Liz Hunt, head of sustainable and responsible business at Syngenta. "We need to make sure we are meeting these needs in a way that optimizes land and input use."

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How pet owners can make a di erence when it comes to recycling

(BPT) - While most Americans may say they're environmentally conscious and care about recycling, their daily habits haven't caught up with their good intentions. In fact, the EPA reports that the recycling rate is currently only at about 32%. Part of this is due to confusion about what and how to recycle. If you're one of the growing number of people with a pet at home, your recycling habits may be even more complex by adding pet product packaging into the mix. With so much packaging produced today, your choice between the recycling bin and the trash can feel inconsequential in the grand scheme. But the truth is, every day consumers play a crucial role in reducing waste. In an ideal world, we would operate in a "circular economy," where the materials we now consider waste instead serve a secondary purpose. Some companies are committing to the environment by switching to more sustainable manufacturing processes and using recyclable - and recycled materials in their packaging. But it takes more than just what companies can do alone; businesses rely on consumers to recycle correctly, fueling the supply of materials used to produce more environmentally friendly packaging. "Many consumers engage in 'wish recycling' - dropping an item in the bin and hoping it will be recycled," said Nida Bockert, senior director, Portfolio Innovation, Optimization and Sustainability at Purina. "At Purina, which makes some of the most popular pet care products, not only are we focused on empowering pet owners to choose the recycling bin instead of the trash, but we're also working to educate people on engaging in thoughtful recycling that avoids contaminating the waste stream." What one company is doing to improve their packaging Over 80% of Purina packaging is already made with materials that can be recycled. Aluminum, which can be endlessly recycled, makes up a large part of the brand's product packaging and is accepted in single-stream recycling which is picked up at your curb. However, only a fraction of the aluminum cans manufactured are made of recycled material, due to lack of supply. This is where consumers play an important role in closing the loop. When consumers rinse and recycle aluminum pet food cans, this creates a supply of second-life aluminum that's repurposed from scrap metal which generates far less greenhouse emissions than new aluminum. By creating a system that reuses existing resources instead of following a single-use method, it's possible to signi cantly reduce the harm done to the planet through consumerism and manufacturing.

What you can do First, support environmentally conscious brands when shopping. Purina is also making progress in recyclability beyond aluminum. The company is hard at work to make all of its packaging recyclable or reusable by 2025. Unsure about what can be recycled when it comes to pet product packaging, and how to recycle it? First, check with your local recycling facility to be sure you're following their guidelines. Here are some basic tips to prepare pet product packaging for recycling: * Metal cans: Rinse and drop into your single-stream recycling bin. * Plastic tubs: Rinse and drop into your single-stream recycling bin. * Tidy Cats containers: Empty and drop into your single-stream recycling bin. * Cardboard from variety packs: Drop into your single-stream recycling bin. * Shrink wrap from variety packs: Drop o at your local grocery store where available. To search your area, visit plastic lmrecycling.org. You can also always look for the "How2Recycle" label on any Purina brand package for help with recycling. If the package doesn't include that label, it's safe to say the product is not recyclable.

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Bison Pastrami, Anyone? Preschool Assistant Makes Sure Kids Get to Know Indigenous Foods

By Ariel Gans and Katherine Huggins MAY 20, 2022

MINNEAPOLIS — Bison pastrami is not typical school lunch fare, but it’s a crowd favorite at a preschool in Minneapolis. Fawn Youngbear-Tibbetts — the seemingly always on-the-go coordinator of Indigenous foods at the Wicoie Nandagikendan Early Childhood Urban Immersion Project — is frequently found tweaking recipes in the kitchen or offering homemade goodies like flourless black-bean brownies. Youngbear-Tibbetts, a longtime Minneapolis resident and member of the White Earth Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, has made it her mission to bring traditional recipes to the 178 children attending Wicoie, who are taught several hours each day in the Dakota and Ojibwe languages. She said the dishes not only help Native American students and their families connect with their culture, but also bolster their nutrition.

“Part of it is getting their palates [used to] eating traditional foods, so that they want it,” she said. “Our kids are so used to eating all of this processed food — the snacks, the sugar.” She hopes students develop a taste for healthier food they will carry through their lives. Across the breakfasts, lunches, and snacks Wicoie Nandagikendan serves, YoungbearTibbetts incorporates sweet potatoes, fresh fruits, leafy greens, fish, and meat from large game animals like bison, which is extremely low in fat, she said. Recently, she distributed a donation of 300 pounds of bison to students’ families. Partly because of a lack of access to healthy food, nearly half of Native American children are overweight or obese, Indian Health Service researchers found in a study published in 2017.

A 2018 report from the First Nations Development Institute found that for “Native American children, their school or schoolrelated meals may be the most reliable, consistent and nutritionally-balanced food they receive,” which Youngbear-Tibbetts has found to be true.

She began cooking regularly in high school after her mother grew sick. “When she was diagnosed with diabetes, I went to her nutrition class with her,” Youngbear-Tibbetts said. “So that really changed how I ate and how I prepared foods.”

Many children at the Minneapolis school come from families with severely limited incomes who may not have cars or be able to get to grocery stores. They often rely on convenience stores for shopping. “A lot of our kids only eat food at school so that’s when it becomes really important to make sure we’re serving the most nutritious” meals, Youngbear-Tibbetts said.

Youngbear-Tibbetts has cooked many of the recipes she serves students for most of her life, including venison, walleye, and meatballs made of turkey, bison, and wild rice. Sometimes she substitutes Indigenous ingredients for foods her students already enjoy. For example, she makes tacos with blue corn tortillas and bison instead of flour

When money is tight, she added, “people tend to purchase the most calories they can with their dollars.”

She also teaches her students how to identify foods that grow in cities, like crabapples and mulberries, to incorporate into their diets.

“That’s potato chips, that’s ramen, that’s highly processed foods, because there’s more calories and it’s cheaper to buy it,” she said.

Native Americans are nearly three times as likely to develop diabetes than are nonHispanic white Americans and 50% as likely to develop heart disease, according to federal data.

Youngbear-Tibbetts said many urban American Indian families never learned how to cook Indigenous food. She has taught .students how to harvest wild rice and catch fish. She also has shown their families how to smoke and fillet fish.

Dr. Mitchell LaCombe, a family physician at the Indian Health Board of Minneapolis, a community health clinic, said his patients face these issues regularly

“We have multiple generations of people and some families that are removed from even knowing how to clean a fish or how to cook deer meat,” she said.

“I can tell people how to eat healthy, but if they can’t afford it or get it or acquire those medicines or those foods, then it doesn’t matter,” LaCombe said.

Youngbear-Tibbetts grew up near Leech Lake, between the Minnesota cities of Grand Rapids and Bemidji, where her father taught her to harvest berries and greens, butcher deer, and catch walleye (a freshwater fish common in the northern United States) and whitefish.

“The traditional diet seems more like a better diet,” LaCombe said, noting that “incorporating the Western-style diet is when things start to go sour. Especially when you get into the fast foods and the convenient foods that taste good.”

By age 10, she said, she could butcher a deer or fillet a fish on her own. By 12, YoungbearTibbetts started cooking dinner for her family, partly because “if you cooked, you didn’t have to do the dishes.”

Ariel Gans and Katherine Huggins are Northwestern University graduate students in the Medill School of Journalism’s Washington, D.C., program.

Energy Conservation To reduce energy consumption in your home, you do not necessarily need to go out and purchase energy ef cient products. Energy conservation can be as simple as turning off lights or appliances when you do not need them. Every time you open the fridge door, approximately 30% of the cold air escapes! This basically leads to more power consume and a higher electricity bill. • According to the ubiquitous Google, they themselves, use 0.0003 of energy to answer an average search query and gives out about 0.2g of carbon dioxide. Yes, REALLY. • A microwave uses about 50% less energy as compared to an oven. Conserve energy, have Pizzas! • Home electronics consume energy even when switched off • LEDs are very energy ef cient and cheap too. Lights in our homes and of ces should be replaced with LEDs to conserve energy. fi

Recycling Rules • • • •

Recycle all bottles, cans and paper. Keep items clean and dry. Do not put plastic bags in the recycling cart. Do not place non-recyclables in the recycling cart. Printed label on cart lid identi es acceptable material.

Did you Know… • • •

Recycling just one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for two hours? Recycling just one aluminum can saves enough energy to power a 14-watt CFL bulb for 20 hours? Recycling just one aluminum can saves enough energy to power a computer for three hours?

When you think of the difference just one person can make, imagine the positive image the City of Sparks can have by recycling.

Acceptable Recyclables:

Unacceptable Recyclables:

*Source: US Environmental Protection Agency fi

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Welcome to Earth Ways! Earth Ways Welcomes you to the website of Rubha Phil, a young nature based permaculture community on the Isle of Skye.

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FRUIT Orange

You Need To Know This Month

The Papaya originated in Mesoamerica, likely in southern Mexico. Regarding the natural distribution of papaya, this has been suggested to range from the northern tropical limit of Mexico to Costa Rica in Central America. The papaya is botanically a berry. It may look like it grows from a tree, but the papaya is actually the fruit of an herb. Papayas grow in tropical climates and are also known as papaws or pawpaws. Their sweet taste, vibrant color, and have a wide variety of health bene ts, they contain high levels of antioxidants vitamin A, vitamin C, and vitamin E. It is noted medically that diets high in antioxidants may reduce the risk of heart disease. The antioxidants prevent the oxidation of cholesterol. When cholesterol oxidizes, it's more likely to create blockages that lead to heart disease. Papayas taste great and are great for the health of your body.

FLOWER

You Need To Know This Month

Larkspur

The Sierra Larkspur is native to western North America from Arizona to Alaska. They are wild owers growing in most mountainous environments. The Sierra Larkspur blooms in early summer, and can reach an average height somewhere between 2 to 8 feet tall. In England the Sierra Larkspur were used to cure ailments and in celebrations during the summer solstice. In Transylvania the dried owers were placed in stalls to prevent witches from casting spells on animals. Native Americans and European settlers made a blue dye from the ower petals. from the ower petals. The Sierra Larkspur blooms in early summer, a great time for you to spot some hummingbirds, and sometimes once again in late summer and early fall. The larkspur is a beautiful and tall owering plant with toxic amounts of diterpene alkaloids that can cause serious neuromuscular e ects in dogs, other animals, and humans. In fact, just two milligrams of the plant are enough to kill an adult. There has fallen a splendid tear From the passion- ower at the gate. She is coming, my dove, my dear; She is coming, my life, my fate; The red rose cries, "She is near, she is near;" And the white rose weeps, "She is late;" The larkspur listens, "I hear; I hear;" And the lily whispers, "I wait."

~ Alfred Lord Tennyson

ANIMAL DANGER OF EXTINCTION

Plover

Snow Leopard

You Need To Know This Month

Vaquita Porpoise

Tiger

Butter y Education and Awareness Day (BEAD) 2022

Green

June 4

Things you can do in June

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Grim 2022 drought outlook for Western US offered warnings for the future as climate change brings a hotter, thirstier atmosphere

Imtiaz Rangwala Research Scientist in Climate, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder

Much of the western U.S. has been in the grip of an unrelenting drought since early 2020. The dryness has coincided with record-breaking wild res, intense and long-lasting heat waves, low stream ows and dwindling water supplies in reservoirs that millions of people across the region rely on. Heading into summer, the outlook is pretty grim. One driver of the Western drought has been persistent La Niña conditions in the tropical Paci c since the summer of 2020. During La Niña, cooler tropical Paci c waters help nudge the jet stream northward. That tends to bring fewer storms to the southern tier of the U.S. and produce pronounced drought impacts in the Southwest. The other and perhaps more important part of the story is the hotter and thirstier atmosphere, caused by a rapidly warming climate. As a climate scientist, I’ve watched how climate change is making drought conditions increasingly worse – particularly in the western and central U.S. The last two years have been more than 2 degrees Fahrenheit (1.1 Celsius) warmer than normal in these regions. Large swaths of the Southwest have been even hotter, with temperatures more than 3 F (1.7 C) higher. Studies suggest the Southwest’s ongoing 20-year drought is the most severe in at least 1,200 years, based on how dry the soils are. A hotter atmosphere sucks more moisture from the soil A thristier atmosphere tends to extract more water out of the land. It exacerbates evaporative stress on the land, particularly when a region is experiencing below-normal precipitation. High evaporative stress can rapidly deplete soil moisture and lead to hotter temperatures, as the evaporative cooling effect is diminished. All this creates hydroclimatic stress for plants, causing restricted growth, drying and even death. As a consequence of a warming climate, the U.S. Southwest has seen an 8% increase in this evaporative demand since the 1980s. This trend is generally happening across other parts of the country.

Flash droughts are also emerging as a growing concern in the Northeast. In 2020, much of New England experienced an extreme hydrologic drought, with low stream ows and groundwater levels and widespread crop losses between May and September. Aided by very warm and dry atmospheric conditions, the drought developed very rapidly over that period from what had been above-normal wet conditions. As humanity enters a hotter future, prolonged periods of weeks to months of below-normal precipitation are going to be of a greater concern almost everywhere. Heading into unfamiliar territory Other forms of droughts are also emerging. Atmospheric heating is causing snow droughts as more precipitation falls as rain rather than snow and snow melts earlier. Shorter snow seasons and longer growing seasons because of warmer temperatures are changing the timing of ecological responses. Land is greening up earlier and causing an earlier loss of water from the land surface through evapotranspiration – the loss of water from plants and soil. This could result in drier soils in the latter half of the growing season. As a result, parts of the central and western U.S. could see both increased greening and drying in the future that are seasonally separated across the growing season. With a rapidly changing climate, we are entering unfamiliar territory. The world will need new ways to better anticipate future droughts that could transform natural and human systems.

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Record evaporative demand contributed to the severity of the ash drought, in addition to a severe short-term precipitation de cit. A ash drought is a drought that intensi es rapidly over a period of a few weeks and often catches forecasters by surprise. The likelihood of ash droughts that can cause severe impacts to agriculture and ecosystems and promote large wild res is expected to increase with a warmer and thirstier atmosphere.

The thistier atmosphere is turning what would otherwise be near-normal or moderately dry conditions into droughts that are more severe or extreme. As the climate heats up further, the increasing atmospheric thirst will continue to intensify drought stress, with consequences for water availability, long-lasting and intense heat stress, and large-scale ecosystem transformation. Climate models project ominous prospects of a more arid climate and more severe droughts in the Southwest and southern Great Plains in the coming decades. In addition to direct impacts of increasing temperatures on future droughts, these regions are also expected to see fewer storms and more days without precipitation. Climate models consistently project a poleward shift in the midlatitude storm tracks during this century as the planet heats up, which is expected to result in fewer storms in the southern tier of the country. Expect ash droughts even in wetter areas The changing nature of droughts is a concern even in parts of the U.S. that are expected to have a net increase in annual precipitation during the 21st century. In a hotter future, because of the high evaporative demand on the land, prolonged periods with weeks to months of below normal precipitation in these areas can lead to signi cant drought, even if the overall trend is for more precipitation. Large parts of the northern Plains, for example, have seen precipitation increase by 10% or more in the last three decades. However, the region is not immune to severe drought conditions in a hotter climate. At the tail end of what was the wettest decade on record in the region, the northern Plains experienced an intense ash drought in the summer of 2017 that resulted in agricultural losses in excess of $2.6 billion and wild res across millions of acres.

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