Microsoft Word - midwest.doc

The document details how a warming climate will increase the frequency and severity of heat waves and heavy precipitation in the Midwest, leading to higher mortality, infrastructure damage, and agricultural losses. It highlights specific risks to the Great Lakes shipping industry due to falling water levels and the threat to public health from water-borne diseases and combined sewer overflows in cities like Chicago and Milwaukee.

• Heat waves in the Midwest are projected to become more frequent, severe, and longer-lasting. Under a higher emissions scenario, heat waves similar to the 1995 Chicago event, which caused over 700 deaths, could occur approximately three times per year by the end of the century.
• Great Lakes ice coverage decreased by roughly 30 percent between 1973 and 2008, with a rate of -8.4 percent per decade. Future water levels are projected to fall by 1 to 2 feet under a higher emissions scenario, which increases shipping costs because large vessels lose up to 240 tons of capacity for every inch of draft lost.
• Precipitation intensity is increasing, with heavy downpours now twice as frequent as they were a century ago. This trend increases the risk of catastrophic flooding, such as the Great Flood of 1993 and the June 2008 Midwest flood, which disrupted major transportation and freight routes.
• Increased heavy rainfall threatens urban water quality through combined sewer systems, where raw sewage spills into waterways. In Chicago, rainfall exceeding 2.5 inches per day triggers such overflows into Lake Michigan; this threshold is projected to be exceeded twice as often under lower emissions and three times as often under higher emissions by the end of the century.
• Climate change impacts on Midwest agriculture include delayed spring planting due to flooding and increased livestock costs from heat stress. While longer growing seasons and higher CO2 may benefit some yields, these are likely offset by increased pests, invasive weeds, and the risk of crop damage from wind and extreme heat exceeding 90C.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (n.d.). Microsoft Word - midwest.doc. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/us-global-climate-change-report-midwest.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Microsoft Word - midwest.doc. n.d. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/us-global-climate-change-report-midwest.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=Microsoft Word - midwest.doc |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/us-global-climate-change-report-midwest.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientistsndmicrosoft, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Microsoft Word - midwest.doc}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/us-global-climate-change-report-midwest.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }