Life/work update

We asked all 50 states about their groundwater rules. Their answers reveal dizzying laws full of gaps that make it even harder to protect aquifers. W/⁦@_e_delger⁩

Looking to talk to people who have personal experiences with extreme weather and disasters for a @nytclimate story -- especially in California! Feel free to DM me.

One way to contextualize the next few day's heat in the US southwest: On average, the hottest time of the year in Tucson, AZ - with an average high of 102ºF - is late June/early July. The forecast high on Monday is now 111°F, tying the record high for the day set back in 1989.

@jdavidgoodman Btw... according to some estimates, climate change made this month's heat wave 5 degrees hotter and 5x as likely. Some context on the heat featuring research by @MichaelFWehner and @ClimateCentral: https://t.co/Yxbh6CRnTh

This dispatch from the Houston bureau on what it's like inside Texas prisons right now is especially haunting. In states across the South, most people in prison don't have access to air conditioning. By @jdavidgoodman:

The Emerging Science of Tracing Smoke Back to Wildfires #news #environment #wildfires #smoke #pollution #climatechange @_e_delger reports for @nytimes EJ Today Headlines: https://t.co/nnLS0bOV3X https://t.co/TT7cHKE0Z6

More live updates on how it is Extremely Hot Right Now, including the role of climate change:

As bad as the heat wave is in the southern U.S. right now, it's been even worse in northern Mexico. Many people have died already. By @emiliano_mega & @viaSimonRomero today:

One climate change worry is extreme precipitation — when a LOT of rain or snow falls at once. Rain is more dangerous, because it causes more floods and landslides. As rising temps turn snow into rain... you can guess where that's going. In @nytclimate:

EMS providers and ERs in Texas are seeing hundreds of patients with heat-related illnesses. I reported on what we know so far about the public health impacts of the heat wave w/ @GinaRivers90 for @insideclimate https://t.co/gsHJyG1S0R

During this TX heat wave, at least 5 prisoners have died of cardiac arrest/heart attack. Tommy “TJ” McCullough, 35, collapsed while mowing a prison field Friday. TDCJ hasn’t acknowledged heat caused a death in uncooled prisons since 2012. #txlege https://t.co/0V2XEzEEMd

Texas is a bellwether for the rest of the nation and our latest climate change-induced heatwave is a terrifying preview of what’s to come: “We’re in a new regime with new rules, and no one knows quite what those rules are,” as one expert told me.

Live updates on the Return of the Smoke (this time in the Midwest):

“The hatchlings — little pancakes on surprisingly quick legs...” By @_e_delger

A study of marine-protected areas off the Central American coast found that people living close to these areas had better food security and greater household wealth.

“The turtles … are critically endangered and found only in #Myanmar. Their common name comes from black and orange spots on their shells, reminiscent of peacock feathers. Scientists know little about the animals.” By ⁦@_e_delger⁩ in @NYTimes

Do you want to see some (very cute, very endangered, very mysterious) baby turtles?

Countries are creating more "marine protected areas," partly to reach the goal of protecting (in some form) 30% of the planet for biodiversity by 2030. I came across a new @smithsonian study that suggests these areas might help people, too. In @nytclimate:

This idealized chart shows how, as our climate changes and temperatures increase, the risk for extreme heat like the bout we are currently experiencing also increases. We are seeing this in real-time, with record warmth significantly outpacing record cold: https://t.co/E14xg4n1wY