The recent historic floods in western Washington and Oregon–just a few years after similar flooding events hit the region in 2021–are a reminder that climate change is no longer a distant threat. It is here now, and it’s altering our relationship with the natural world in unprecedented ways.

For my most recent piece published by Columbia Insight, I took a look at how these most recent floods in the Pacific Northwest will affect the environment in the short, medium, and long-term. Some impacts–like challenges to maintaining infrastructure in flood zones–are fairly obvious. Others, like how decades of fire suppression in the mountains interacts with heavy rainfall to create a recipe for disaster, are much less intuitive. Regardless, knowing what to expect is part of being prepared for what the climate crisis has in store for us. Check out the piece to learn more.