2 New Troubling Climate Change Stories Are Out

For readers concerned about climate change, two disturbing articles released over the past few days have both been linked to the topic:

• As temperatures continue to rise, federal data reveals that heat-related visits to the emergency room also rose in the US last year. There were a total of 119,605 ER visits due to heat in 2023, the vast majority of those between May and September, ABC News reports. Heat-related ER visits were three times more likely in July and August than they were in May, June, or September, a significantly higher risk than the years from 2018 to 2022, when such visits were only twice as likely in July and August than during the other three months. The CDC, which reported the results, said the findings were "consistent with record-breaking temperatures observed … in 2023."

• Meanwhile, a joint report from two top climate monitoring organizations reveals Europe is the fastest-warming continent on the planet, the AP reports. Per the report from the UN's World Meteorological Organization and the European Union's climate agency, Copernicus, Europe's temperatures are rising at a rate nearly double the global average.

Is all this bad news pushing us toward consensus? A new CBS poll finds that 70% of Americans support the idea of the US taking steps to reduce climate change. (More climate change stories.)