U.S. Government Halts Tracking of Extreme Weather Costs

In a controversial move, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will stop monitoring economic damages from major weather events.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has announced it will cease tracking the financial impacts of the country’s most devastating weather events, specifically those with damages exceeding $1 billion. This decision raises concerns among insurance companies, researchers, and policymakers as it may impede their understanding of severe disasters like hurricanes, floods, and wildfires—phenomena increasingly influenced by climate change.

Starting this year, analysts will find it challenging to access critical data that connects economic consequences to natural disasters. This marks a significant setback for those working to analyze patterns in extreme weather, especially in a climate that continues to grow more volatile.

Critics argue that the move is part of a broader trend under the Trump administration to restrict important climate research. Recent weeks have seen the administration downplay the significance of a comprehensive national climate assessment, propose cuts to climate-related funding at the U.S. Geological Survey and various government departments, and eliminate National Parks grants aimed at combating climate change.

Experts like Jesse M. Keenan, associate professor at Tulane University, expressed that halting these efforts will significantly impair governmental ability to allocate resources effectively. "It defies logic," Keenan remarked, emphasizing that the absence of this crucial data will leave the U.S. government unprepared to deal with the financial realities of extreme weather.

In a commentary on social media platform Bluesky, Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) condemned the administration’s decision as "anti-science, anti-safety, and anti-American." Lawmakers and researchers continue to voice their frustration and concern regarding the implications of losing this vital tracking data amidst growing climate challenges.