Climate and environment updates: Wildfires aren't just part of the climate crisis, they're a public health problem

As carbon dioxide levels in Earth's atmosphere reach record highs and the effects of human-amplified climate change intensify, climate scientists are urgently searching for effective ways to slow global warming. Rapidly reducing atmospheric levels of CO2, a heat-trapping greenhouse gas, is one of the most critical challenges, and in many cases, nature can be part of the solution.

Hidden along the world's coastlines and just beneath the ocean's surface, seagrass meadows are among the most threatened and one of the most overlooked ecosystems on the planet. But they could play an essential role in fighting climate change thanks to their remarkable ability to absorb and store carbon, according to a new study published in Nature Communications.

Although they cover only about 0.2% of the ocean floor, seagrass meadows store a significant portion of the ocean's carbon, accounting for roughly 10% of its total carbon storage capacity. Seagrass absorbs CO2 up to 35 times faster than tropical rainforests, according to the United Nations Environment Programme.

In the largest study of coastal ecosystems to date, researchers analyzed over 3,000 samples of seagrass and soil from 61 countries, revealing significantly greater variation in carbon storage among species and regions than previously understood.

"Seagrass meadows are not just important for marine biodiversity, they are a critical piece of the climate puzzle," said lead author Johannes Krause, a researcher at Conservation International and assistant research professor at Florida International University. "This research underscores their vast potential as carbon sinks and the importance of accurate data to ensure we're protecting them properly."

Researchers say that protecting and restoring seagrass meadows is a promising yet underutilized climate mitigation tool. Greater investment and research on these ecosystems can help preserve biodiversity and strengthen the planet's natural ability to store carbon.

Protecting vegetated coastal ecosystems, like seagrass meadows, could prevent the release of 1.2 billion metric tons of CO2 into the atmosphere, the equivalent of removing the annual carbon footprint of 100 million homes in the United States, according to the nonprofit Conservation International, which funded the study. Researchers also estimate this could avoid more than $200 billion in climate change-related costs through 2050.

-ABC News meteorologist Dan Peck

For the first time, a new study finds climate change is now the primary driver of biodiversity loss in the United States.

Researchers examined the five predominant threats facing 2,766 imperiled species in the U.S. Those are plants and animals that have significantly declined in numbers and are at high risk of extinction.

The team from the Center for Conservation Innovation at Defenders of Wildlife found when they applied climate change assessments to the plants and animals on the U.S. Endangered Species Act list, climate change was the most far-reaching biodiversity threat, impacting 91% of ESA-listed species.

While climate change may be the most common threat, it's not the only one. Changes to land and sea ecosystems, such as land conversion, pollution and resource extraction, was the No. 2 most common at 90%. Other primary drivers of biodiversity loss include overexploitation, invasive species and pollution.

These five threats often overlap. The researchers found that 86% of all U.S. imperiled species faced two or more threats. On average, those on the ESA list faced nearly three of the five threats. And the researchers found a species' habitat largely impacts its risks. Marine species, for example, face the highest number of threats.

"With the biodiversity and climate crises deeply intertwined, not only is addressing climate change necessary for imperiled species, but protecting biodiversity and supporting healthy ecosystems is also essential to shifting our climate trajectory," the authors wrote in the study.

- ABC News Weather and Climate Unit's Matthew Glasser

The government organization responsible for forecasting hurricanes and keeping people safe during these deadly and destructive storms set a new record for forecast track accuracy in 2024. But recent budget and staffing cuts by the Trump administration could jeopardize this progress.

Part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Hurricane Center played a crucial role in helping people prepare through timely and accurate forecasts. NHC issued 347 official forecasts during the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, and its track predictions set accuracy records for every time period, according to a new report released on Wednesday.

Track forecast performance, which details the path a storm will take, was the best in history for the agency. Official track forecast errors have decreased significantly in recent years and are now up to 75% smaller than they were a few decades ago, according to the report.

The report also analyzed intensity forecast accuracy, which continues to lag behind track forecasts. However, the report said overall intensity predictions have shown steady improvement over the past decade.

NOAA and several key divisions, like the National Weather Service and National Hurricane Center, have been impacted by recent staff reductions approved by the Trump administration. According to current and former NOAA employees who spoke to ABC News, these cuts are impacting offices that are already coping with inadequate staffing levels.

Staffing limitations have impacted several key services provided by the National Weather Service, including reducing weather balloon launches at select sites nationwide. With fewer upper-air observations, less data is available for the weather models that forecasters rely on.

NOAA and the United States Air Force operate aircraft, commonly called the Hurricane Hunters, which fly into tropical cyclones to collect data essential for forecasting a storm's path, timing and strength. According to a March report from the Government Accountability Office, these vital missions have also faced staffing and maintenance challenges in recent years, which has resulted in canceled flights.

Hurricane Hunter flights provide critical meteorological data from inside the storms, a necessary component for producing detailed tropical cyclone forecasts. NOAA research shows that their collected data improves hurricane forecast accuracy by at least 10%. The more high-quality data that forecasters have at their disposal, the more effectively they can develop precise and detailed forecasts.

-ABC News meteorologist Dan Peck

It's been more than 50 years since the first Earth Day in the United States. On April 22, 1970, people gathered at events across the country to raise awareness about the environmental issues impacting our nation and the planet. While the Earth Day movement has helped raise awareness about human-amplified climate change and has led to some regulatory actions, 5 1/2 decades later, the planet continues to warm at an alarming rate, with the impacts of that warming worsening with each passing decade.

Climate scientists have long recognized that increasing levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that trap heat in the atmosphere contribute directly to global warming. There is a strong and well-established link between rising global temperatures and extreme heat events as a result of human-induced climate change.

Since the first Earth Day, the annual average concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by more than 30%. It is now rising at the fastest rate on record, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

All 50 states and 240 cities across the U.S. have experienced warming since the first Earth Day, according to an analysis by Climate Central, a nonprofit climate research group. Alaska has warmed the fastest, followed by Delaware, Massachusetts and New Jersey.

The Arctic region is heating much faster than the global average, which has pushed Alaska to the top of the list, with its average annual temperature rising by 4.3 degrees Fahrenheit since 1970. Among cities, the fastest-warming over the past 55 years include Reno and Las Vegas in Nevada, El Paso and Tyler in Texas and Burlington, Vermont.

Overall, the contiguous United States is now about 2.8 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than it was in 1970, based on average annual temperatures.

Warming global temperatures are also driving sea-level rise, which has been accelerating in recent decades due to melting glaciers and ice sheets, as well as the thermal expansion of seawater as it warms.

Since 1970, sea levels have risen by more than half a foot, on average, across the contiguous United States, according to the Interagency Task Force on Sea Level Change. Some regional coastlines, states and cities have experienced even greater increases. Sea-level rise varies regionally along the nation's coastlines due to shifts in both land elevation and ocean height.

The Northeast coastline, for example, has recorded an average increase of 9 inches since 1970. Florida has seen a rise of 7 inches over the past 5 1/2 decades, while in Washington, D.C., the sea level is now 8 inches higher than in 1970.

-ABC News meteorologist Dan Peck