"In 2023, insurers lost money on homeowners coverage in 18 states, more than a third of the country. The result is that insurance companies are raising premiums by as much as 50 percent or more, cutting back on coverage or leaving entire states altogether." As Insurers Around the U.S. Bleed Cash From Climate Shocks, Homeowners Lose (NYT; archive)

"As firms exit some areas and demand higher premiums in others, affordable home insurance cover — for many an essential annual outlay, often a condition of their mortgage debt — is getting harder to secure." The Uninsurable World: What climate change is costing homeowners (FT) "The insurance industry must resist the temptation to 'give up the game' and retreat from areas blighted by extreme weather in a move that would leave governments to foot the bill for disasters, according to one of the biggest risk modelling companies." Insurers need to 'step up' on catastrophe coverage, says risk modelling chief (FT) "These so-called 'severe-convective storms' are large and powerful thunderstorms that form and disappear within a few hours or days, often spinning off hail storms and tornadoes as they shoot across the flat expanses of the central United States. The insurance industry refers to these storms as 'secondary perils'—the other term of art is 'kitty cats,' a reference to their being smaller than big natural catastrophes or 'nat cats.'" How 'kitty cats' are wrecking the home insurance industry (Grist) But why, you may ask, have the insurance companies not planned ahead? "...an assessment of global gross domestic product loss in a so-called 'hothouse' world of 3C higher temperatures by a group of 114 central banks and financial supervisors, known as the Network for Greening the Financial System, did not include 'impacts related to extreme weather, sea-level rise or wider societal impacts from migration or conflict.'" Financial models on climate risk 'implausible', say actuaries (FT)

Coal is more than a commodity. It is 300-million-year-old life matter transformed into carbon. It performs a vital function – storing carbon underground. It is rich with meaning and portent, and it deserves our attention. Human lives are ephemeral, yet our actions in the here-and-now shape an unseen future. Through its dynamic materiality, coal connects us to Deep Time and Nature. It reminds us of our own Earth origins and helps us re-vision how to live on a fragile and finite planet.

The USDA has updated their plant hardiness zone maps. The 2012 USDA hardiness zones were calculated using the average lowest winter temperature for the observation period of 1976-2005. The new zones are calculated using the years 1991-2020. These two observation windows overlap. Colors show the difference between the two 30-year averages for each place on the map. Choose a city or region to see what's changed over 44 years.