Climate.gov may soon be closed, ending important U.S. government climate and weather resources used by countless people every year. guardian The website’s entire content production team was released at the end of May, becoming some of the latest workers to be widely laid off by the Trump administration.
Operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Climate.gov publishes scientific data on the Earth’s climate, including maps, educational materials and articles designed to inform the public. According to the website, Climate.gov’s mission is to “provide science and information to climate-smart countries.”
Sadly, this flow of climate information may soon become a popular ending, with 10 editorial teams at Calimate.gov reportedly being fired before May 31.
How do we navigate climate disinformation online?
The cuts began shortly after President Donald Trump’s inauguration in February, three members of the editorial team of Climate.gov were fired in the approval of the Doge’s massive purge of probation employees. The remaining seven were subsequently ruled in recent weeks, although all 10 were on Climate.Gov’s list of employees who were outdated at the time of writing.
Mixable light speed
“[The current U.S. administration] Thinking that climate change is not real, they don’t want anyone to talk about it.
Trump has been actively hindering efforts to combat climate change for years, pulling the United States out of the Paris climate agreement and canceling its clean energy program during his 2017 presidency. This week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirmed that the company confirmed that it is working to eliminate all restrictions on greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel plants. The EPA further stated that it intends to weaken regulations that limit the emissions of toxic air pollutants such as mercury in power plants.
NOAA is one of many government agencies that has implemented a large number of staff layoffs this year by Elon Musk’s Doge. It is reported that since Trump took office, about 1,000 former NOAA workers have been laid off, accounting for 10% of the NOAA workforce. This includes more than 150 key roles as of May.
NPR reported that climate.gov will stop publishing new content on July 1, although it is not clear what will happen to the current available content. The site can be completely closed, rotted, or even reapplied to host fewer scientific articles that are more in line with Trump’s perception of climate change. Whatever happens, it seems that climate education and action are not a high priority for the Trump administration.
