A snapshot of how climate change threatens every aspect of life, from nature itself to the food we eat.
A Different World
Birds
10 of 21 rare and endangered Hawaiian forest birds may dramatically lose their habitat by 2100, making them susceptible to extinction. The reason: If temperatures continue to rise, mosquitoes will travel higher in elevation, and avian malaria will go with them.
Coral & Food Fish
With warming temperatures, widespread coral bleaching is expected annually in Hawai‘i by 2045. Around that time, studies predict the state’s coral cover to drop from its current 38 percent to 11 percent, causing a $1.3 billion per year loss to the economy. Hawai‘i’s reefs also provide seven million meals annually for local families, according to Conservation International Hawai‘i. The number of tuna and billfish are also expected to decline.
Culture
With a rise in seas of 3.2 feet, nearly 550 Hawaiian cultural sites would be flooded or eroded statewide, resulting in forced separation to places that offer a connection to ancestors and identity for Native Hawaiians. Reduced streamflow also threatens taro and other traditional crops.
Health
Climate change has major health implications and is already causing an increase in heat-related deaths, which is expected to disproportionately affect low-income populations, who, for example, may not be able to afford air conditioners.
Water
Decreasing rainfall, more extreme rain events, and increased drought are already more common in the state, all of which can cause water shortages (for people and natural systems) that pose a serious threat to our remote islands.
Infrastructure & Community
Sea level rise of 3.2 feet could cause 6,500 structures and 38 miles of major roads to flood—cutting off some communities with a single roadway—and causing nearly 20,000 residents to be displaced, with uncertainty of where they would go.
Photos courtesy of (clock-wise from top left): TNC/Ethan Welty, Olin Lagon, Shutterstock, TNC/Ethan Welty, Li Yang on Unsplash, Rafael Bergstrom, Philip Racsa