Heat is threatening the integrity of America’s infrastructure

As rising temperatures warp steel and strain power grids, the nation’s infrastructure is struggling to keep up with the demands of climate change.

Zoë Schlanger reports for The Atlantic.


In short:

  • Heat expansion is causing rail lines, bridges and roads to warp and buckle, complicating transportation.
  • Power grids are increasingly stressed, reducing electricity delivery while demand spikes during heat waves.
  • Updating infrastructure to handle extreme heat is costly, and solutions may require significant public and political support.

Key quote:

"You can’t reengineer all of U.S. infrastructure as quickly as the climate is changing."

— Mikhail Chester, director of the Metis Center for Infrastructure and Sustainable Engineering at Arizona State University

Why this matters:

The rapid pace of climate change is outstripping the ability of existing infrastructure to adapt, posing risks to public safety and economic stability. Investing in resilient systems is crucial to mitigate these impacts and protect critical services.

Related:

homelessness climate change
Credit: Andreea Popa

Op-ed: People need shelter from climate change — their health hangs in the balance

The discourse on climate resilience must include affordable housing policy solutions.

The expansion of federal housing policy initiatives that Vice President Kamala Harris proposed in August — looking to increase the number of housing units on the market and make more units affordable — is actually a climate change adaptation policy. And much more is needed.

Keep reading...Show less
Senator Whitehouse & climate change

Senator Whitehouse puts climate change on budget committee’s agenda

For more than a decade, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse gave daily warnings about the mounting threat of climate change. Now he has a powerful new perch.

Youth climate case petition heads to Supreme Court

A group of young plaintiffs is asking the Supreme Court to allow their climate lawsuit against the federal government to proceed after lower courts dismissed it.

Karen Zraick reports for The New York Times.

Keep reading...Show less

Brazil urges EU to delay new deforestation law

Brazil has asked the European Union to postpone the implementation of its new deforestation law, which could negatively impact exports of agricultural products.

Lisandra Paraguassu reports for Reuters.

Keep reading...Show less

New map reveals nearly half of the US faces landslide risk

Government scientists have released new data showing that 44% of the U.S. is at risk of experiencing landslides, with some areas particularly vulnerable.

Austyn Gaffney reports for The New York Times.

Keep reading...Show less
Greenland landslide triggered global seismic event for nine days
Credit: Joe/Pixabay

Greenland landslide triggered global seismic event for nine days

A climate-driven landslide and mega-tsunami in Greenland in 2023 caused a seismic event that made the Earth vibrate for more than a week.

Damian Carrington reports for The Guardian.

Keep reading...Show less

Houston faces growing threats from hurricanes and heat waves, experts warn

As climate change drives more severe weather, Houston remains unprepared for the deadly combination of power outages and extreme heat following hurricanes.

By Niko Kommenda, Shannon Osaka and Simon Ducroquet report for The Washington Post.

Keep reading...Show less

Harris links climate action to American values as part of presidential push

Vice President Kamala Harris is reframing climate action as a patriotic duty, a strategy researchers say could boost support across political divides.

Kate Yoder reports for Grist.

Keep reading...Show less
From our Newsroom
U.S. Steel Pennsylvania pollution

As Biden prepares to block the sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel, pollution concerns persist in Pennsylvania

“Pennsylvania steel communities have lived with dangerous air quality for generations. That needs to end.”

environmental justice

LISTEN: Elijah Hutchinson on New York City’s push for climate justice

"Environmental justice itself is for the first time in the title of the climate office."

CNX Shapiro fracking

A Pennsylvania fracking company with more than 2,000 environmental violations selected for federal environmental justice funding

CNX Resources is slated to receive Justice40 dollars for self-monitoring. Health and justice advocates are outraged.

Cancer Alley Louisiana

Op-ed: “I’m sorry, I can’t hear you” — disabling environments in Cancer Alley and the Ohio River Valley

For communities plagued by energy extraction and petrochemical buildout, struggles of environmental justice often fall on deaf ears.

Stay informed: sign up for The Daily Climate newsletter
Top news on climate impacts, solutions, politics, drivers. Delivered to your inbox week days.