Climate Point: Report warns of real estate upheaval

Welcome to Climate Point, your weekly guide to climate, energy and the environment. From Palm Springs, California, I'm Janet Wilson. Like many, our home is the most valuable asset my husband and I own. But a startling new report out this week, combined with devastating wildfires and major flood risks in our area, has us questioning what we should do long-term.

Real estate upheaval. With natural disasters and extreme weather events growing more common as climate change takes hold, the U.S. real estate market will lose more than a trillion dollars in value over the next 30 years, as Americans move away from riskier areas and toward those expected to be more resilient, according to a new report, Property Prices in Peril, by analytics firm First Street.

A climate migration won’t be linear, writes Paste BN's Andrea Riquier. Americans will likely continue to flock to many areas that face the most peril, like parts of Texas, where buyers think amenities and favorable economic conditions outweigh mounting costs of climate risk.

Major metros in Texas are projected to see 76% population growth over 30 years, while "climate abandonment" areas could lose 38% of their population and see home value declines averaging 6.2%. But Tampa, Florida, could see as much as a 25% decline in home prices.

Monumental changes? Since 1906, when President Teddy Roosevelt protected Wyoming's Devil's Tower as a national monument under the Antiquities Act, both GOP and Democratic presidents have set aside millions of acres of public lands to preserve archeological, culturally significant and ecologically diverse areas - many of which went on to become national parks.

But newly sworn-in Interior Secretary, Doug Burgum issued a sweeping order late Monday that mandates a review of America's national monuments for potential oil and gas drilling and mining reserves.

His order subjects 157 protected sites in 33 states and national territories to an expedited 15-day review and possible revisions, as I write for The Desert Sun. Republican lawmakers have criticized presidents' use of the Antiquities Act to block mining and fossil fuels on federal lands.

But environmental, hunting and fishing groups sharply condemned Burgum's actions, once the meaning became clear.

"This is a sneaky, unpatriotic attack that strikes at the very foundation of the country’s beloved public lands," one coalition said, saying the order threatens $640-billion in recreation business. "These national treasures are broadly beloved. They safeguard our water, buoy the outdoor recreation economy, protect our trails, and preserve a national heritage rich in culture and natural beauty."

Not so grand. A federal judge has rejected a lawsuit by Arizona lawmakers challenging former President Joe Biden’s designation of a national monument near the Grand Canyon. The dismissal shifts attention to Washington, writes the Arizona Republic's Brandon Loomis, where many on both sides expect that President Donald Trump may shrink or rescind the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument. At issue is the prospect of renewed uranium prospecting in the Utah region.

Going nuclear. Fracking executive Chris Wright was approved and sworn in as Energy Secretary this week, and also quickly issued an order called "Unleashing the Golden Era of American Energy Dominance" to pump up nuclear energy and restore liquified natural gas exports. Wright, who has previously denied human-caused climate change, also criticized net zero carbon policies in his order, saying they raise energy costs, threaten reliability and undermine national security.

Customers would be asked to bear the costs of a series of smaller, modular nuclear reactors in Indiana if three bills introduced in the state legislature advance, reports Karl Schneider for the Indianapolis Star. Consumer advocates say the technology is unproven.

Iowa’s only nuclear power plant may reopen, with alternative energy provider Next Era saying it has taken the first steps to recommission the 600-megawatt Duane Arnold Energy Center in eastern Iowa by as soon as 2028, per the Des Moines Register's Donnelle Eller.

Shell-shocked. Consumers and restaurants alike are scrambling to find reasonably priced eggs, as a particularly virulent strain of avian flu has decimated chicken farms across the U.S. The flu, which experts say spreads via wild birds' long distance migrations and contact with domestic poultry, can be harmful to humans, though not as often. If you've got backyard hens, here are some safety tips.

Rat-a-tat. Rat populations are rising in cities, per a new study that Paste BN's Doyle Rice reports on. Primary among the reasons found for the growing vermin problem: warmer average temperatures due to climate change. Which city in the study is seeing the fastest rat growth? That would be Washington, D.C., followed by San Francisco, Toronto, New York City and Amsterdam.

Read on for more, including news about a spoonful of plastics in your brain. Some stories below may require a subscription.  If someone forwarded you this email and you'd like to receive Climate Point in your inbox once a week, sign up here.