Future Wildfires and Flooding: Quantifying Increased Likelihood Across the United States

From my latest in EHP:

The researchers compared flood- and smoke-exposure projections between two climate scenarios: a “moderate” projected warming of approximately 2°C, and a “high” warming of 4°C, which corresponds with atmospheric carbon dioxide levels of roughly 940 ppm. 

They estimated that in both 2050 and 2090, an additional one-third of the country’s population will live in areas affected by larger and more frequent inland flooding under the 4° versus 2° warming trajectory. 

They also estimated that nearly 10 million more people will be exposed to smoke in 2090 under the high- versus moderate-warming scenario. This includes 1 million children aged 4 and younger, and 1.7 million people aged 65 and older. Both groups are considered particularly susceptible to the harmful impacts of smoke.

Also! Two past Science Selections and one past feature have been included in the latest issue of the EHP Chinese Edition. They are: "Air Pollution and Suicide: Exploring a Potential Risk Factor," "Arsenic and Diabetes: Assessing Risk at Low-to-Moderate Exposures," and "Down to Earth: The Emerging Field of Planetary Health."