June 2, 2017 Press Releases and Announcements

Gillespie Silent on Climate Change on Virginia’s Coast While Trump Quits Paris Accord


by Christina Freundlich

On the same day that Donald Trump withdrew from the Paris Climate Accord, Ed Gillespie visited Virginia Beach and Hampton Roads, two communities that are dangerously facing the threat of climate change.

We are wondering if Gillespie had anything to say to the coastal residents about how he plans to stand up to Trump and protect some of Virginia’s most vulnerable coastal communities.

With a sea level rise scenario of 0.75m, estimated damages would cost up to $100 million annually -- just for the residential properties in Hampton Roads alone.

So far, Virginians haven’t heard a word on how he plans to fight back against climate change.

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Sea level rise, climate change and resiliency concern Hampton Roads panelists

Hampton Roads Business Journal

A boatload of economic opportunities will remain anchored in Hampton Roads if the region’s leaders and residents can proactively deal with climate change. Hurricane Matthew caused widespread flooding and damage in Hampton Roads in October. Although that was a severe storm, it usually takes much less to bring downtown Norfolk’s “Lake Olney” back to life. Olney Street is one of many flood-prone areas in the city. And the region just experienced record-breaking high temperatures in February.

 

Hampton Roads military bases brace for climate change, sea-level rise

Daily Press

...the Department of Defense released a Climate Change Adaptation Roadmap, which recognized Hampton Roads as the largest concentration of U.S. military sites in the world and an area that is frequently inundated with flood waters. The map lays out plans to assess U.S. military bases worldwide for potential climate change impacts and to address those issues. The department has already started work here to address a projected 1.5- to 2-foot sea-level rise over the next 20 to 50 years.

 

Editorial: On climate change, abandoned by Washington

The Pilot

Reports by trustworthy media sources circulated last week claiming that President Donald Trump intends to sign an order that would withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Accord….If Trump follows through, it would represent a massive step away from the type of leadership on environmental stewardship the world needs from the United States — and it could have catastrophic implications for the residents of Hampton Roads.

 

Trump may doubt climate change, but Pentagon sees it as a ‘threat multiplier’

McClatchy

President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement puts him at odds with the Pentagon, which has been warning for years that climate change poses a critical national security threat. At his confirmation hearing, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis called climate change a “driver of instability” that “requires a broader, whole-of-government response.”