WASHINGTON, D.C. — A new forecast from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), projecting an above-average hurricane season in the Atlantic, highlighted the increasing threat of climate-fueled disasters for people and wildlife alike. The forecast, which named near-record ocean temperatures and rising sea levels as major drivers of severe storms, underscored the urgent need for climate action on a national and global scale.

“Climate-fueled hurricanes are threatening increasing numbers of people and wildlife every year thanks to the intensifying climate crisis,” said Shannon Heyck-Williams, Associate Vice President of Climate and Energy at the National Wildlife Federation. “It doesn’t have to be this way — and nature can play a leading role in addressing both the dangers of climate-fueled storms as well as the long-term drivers of the changing climate. To prevent hurricanes and other natural disasters from getting worse, it’s never been more important to decarbonize our economy and institute climate-resilient practices across our country.”

To learn more about the role of climate change in our natural disasters — and what we can do about it — visit the “Unnatural Disasters” story map created by the National Wildlife Federation’s Climate and Energy Program.