The NCA5 is a report delivered to the President, Congress, and the Nation that analyzes the effects of global change on the natural environment, agriculture, energy production and use, land and water resources, transportation, human health and welfare, human social systems, and biological diversity. The report also analyses current trends in global change, both human-induced and natural, and forecasts major trends for the subsequent 25 to 100 years. The report is intended to provide a synthesis of scientific data to support informed decision-making for distribution of investments across the United States.

National Climate Assessments are issued approximately every four years. PCMSC scientists Patrick Barnard, Amy East, Li Erikson, Eric Grossman, and Curt Storlazzi spent the past two and a half years contributing their time and expertise to the NCA5 chapters pertinent to their research: Barnard is an author of Chapter 9: Coastal Effects, as well as a contributor to the Compound Events focus box; East is an author of Chapter 6: Land Cover and Land Use Change, as well as a contributor to the Western Wildfires focus box; Erikson is a coordinating lead author of Chapter 27: Northwest, of which Grossman is an author in addition to contributing to the Blue Carbon focus box; and Storlazzi is an author of Chapter 30: Hawai’i and U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands. 

Eighteen of the 32 NCA5 chapters have contributions by USGS scientists, and over 80% of Department of the Interior contributors to NCA5 are from the USGS scientific ranks. This statistic highlights the breadth of USGS expertise and the bureau’s critical role in supporting U.S. climate science. 

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