Climate disasters are clobbering local responders

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Aug 22, 2023 View in browser   By Alex Hargrave and Arianna Skibell Presented by Chevron Search and rescue team members work near power lines in a residential area devastated by a wildfire in Lahaina, Hawaii. | Jae C. Hong/AP Photo Alex Hargrave reports: This summer’s extreme weather onslaught is shedding a light on a nationwide problem: Local governments aren’t ready for emergencies. When natural disasters fueled by a changing climate grab the headlines, the Federal Emergency Management Agency gets most of the scrutiny on the government response. But the feds generally swoop in to aid recovery after the storm has passed. Local emergency managers are the first ones on the ground. They know the roads, access points and community dynamics. But as the rapidly warming planet makes fires and storms more frequent and intense, localities are facing unprecedented conditions — and they are not prepared. Limited budgets and inadequate staffing only make matters worse. Take Lahaina, the small city in Maui, Hawaii, still reeling from this month’s devastating wildfire. The county’s chief emergency manager, Herman Andaya, resigned last week amid criticism, including from Hawaii Gov. Josh Green, that his agency did not adequately warn people of impending danger. At least 100 people have died and more than 800 are missing. (Andaya, who cited health concerns as his reason for stepping down, defended his response). A prime example of a botched emergency response is the Camp Fire that devastated Paradise, Calif. — population 26,000 — five years ago. Local responders were criticized for failing to reach all residents with evacuation instructions, leading to a bottleneck on the few roads out of town. But just one employee at the local sheriff’s office was coordinating those efforts. Yucel Ors with the National League of Cities said the reality of emergency readiness is a lot more complicated than “they should have prepared for that.” “Preparation, mitigation and resilience planning demand substantial resources, such as skilled personnel and funding, which are often lacking in small and medium sized municipalities,” he said. While Lahaina sees more than 2 million tourists annually, it has a population of just over 12,700. This isn’t an isolated incident. Disasters that require advance preparation and subsequent response are increasingly common, says Dawn Shiley of the International Association of Emergency Managers. Her membership is now tracking several potential storms off the East Coast, dealing with a tropical storm that made landfall in Texas today, still responding to Tropical Storm Hilary in California and the Hawaiian fire and, to top it all off, reacting to a heat index of 113 degrees Fahrenheit in the Chicago area.   It's Tuesday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO's Power Switch. I'm your host, Arianna Skibell. Big thanks to Alex Hargrave for breaking down how climate change is affecting local emergency responses. Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to askibell@eenews.net. And folks, let's keep it classy.   A message from Chevron: Energy demand is projected to reach a record high in 2023 and will continue to rise in the future. Chevron is responding to the growing need by increasing our U.S. oil and gas production in ways that are affordable, reliable, and ever-cleaner.   Listen to today’s POLITICO Energy podcast Today in POLITICO Energy’s podcast: Zack Colman breaks down the United Arab Emirates' deliberations over creating one of the largest state-sponsored financial funds to spur clean energy projects.   A message from Chevron:   Power Centers EPA Administrator Michael Regan (left) and others applaud after President Joe Biden signed an executive order creating the White House Office of Environmental Justice in April. | Susan Walsh/AP Photo Carbon capture ‘down your throat’ Environmental justice advocates have long opposed efforts to build carbon capture infrastructure in marginalized communities over fears that pipelines could burst, storage sites might leak and fossil fuel power plants that emit smog and soot might linger, writes Jean Chemnick. But the Biden administration has repeatedly linked carbon capture and storage with environmental justice, often moving against the express wishes of its own hand-picked advisory panel on the issue. Challenging natural gas pipelines Environmental groups and a landowner are fighting a natural gas pipeline on the East Coast, arguing it is not needed and would contribute to climate change, write Miranda Willson and Niina H. Farah. How the court rules in the case could influence pipeline development in states that are setting limits on their total greenhouse gas emissions and moving away from fossil fuels. EU taps new Green Deal chief Known as Europe's Mr. Fix It, Maroš Šefčovič has taken control of the European Union’s climate policy after Frans Timmermans quit to make a run for Dutch prime minister, write Karl Mathiesen, Zia Weise and Suzanne Lynch. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen handed the powerful role of executive vice president to Šefčovič, who is a member of the center-left Social Democrats. In Other News Radioactive wastewater: Japan is moving forward with a contested plan to release more than a million tons of treated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant. Emotional drive: A new study has found that anger is the most powerful emotion by far for spurring climate action.   GROWING IN THE GOLDEN STATE: POLITICO California is growing, reinforcing our role as the indispensable insider source for reporting on politics, policy and power. From the corridors of power in Sacramento and Los Angeles to the players and innovation hubs in Silicon Valley, we're your go-to for navigating the political landscape across the state. Exclusive scoops, essential daily newsletters, unmatched policy reporting and insights — POLITICO California is your key to unlocking Golden State politics. LEARN MORE.     Subscriber Zone A showcase of some of our best subscriber content. A large plume of smoke rises from BP's Deepwater Horizon offshore oil rig in 2010. | AP Photo/Gerald Herbert The administration is reversing a Trump-era rollback and finalized new offshore drilling safety regulations that will reinstate the well-control rules put in place after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill. California will soon provide electric vehicle rebates only to low-income buyers, who typically drive older cars that emit more pollution. Democratic lawmakers are urging the cancellation of a dredging project in Puerto Rico that could expose vulnerable communities to new liquefied natural gas and oil tanker projects. That's it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.   SUBSCRIBE TO CALIFORNIA CLIMATE: Climate change isn’t just about the weather. It's also about how we do business and create new policies, especially in California. So we have something cool for you: A brand-new California Climate newsletter. It's not just climate or science chat, it's your daily cheat sheet to understanding how the legislative landscape around climate change is shaking up industries across the Golden State. Subscribe now to California Climate to keep up with the changes.       A message from Chevron: Oil and gas remain critical components of the global energy system. As energy demand continues to increase, this country has the resources to meet that demand while strengthening its security and economy. In 2022, we increased oil and gas production in the Permian Basin by 16%, and we’re working to grow our supply even further to keep up with rising demand. And we’re also working to do it responsibly, like in the Gulf of Mexico, where our operations are some of the world’s lowest carbon intensity producing assets. Working to provide energy that’s affordable, reliable and ever-cleaner, that’s energy in progress.     Follow us on Twitter Arianna Skibell @ariannaskibell   Follow us

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