Publication: L.A. Times

UCLA Expert: Daniel Swain: Assistant Researcher and Climate Specialist, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability

Synopsis: In a study last year, scientists Xingying Huang and Swain found that climate change is dramatically increasing the risk of a catastrophic megaflood in California. Their research showed climate change has already doubled the likelihood of a once-in-a-century flood in any given year.

UCLA News: Swain said the flood protection plan for the Central Valley represents a positive step for the state to become more prepared. “I think that California would be in a better place from a flood risk perspective if the entire plan were fully implemented, and funded.” However, he noted, the state still needs to do flood modeling for ARkStorm scenarios based on the latest science. Swain said that will happen this year with funding from the state Department of Water Resources and a high-resolution flood model used by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. When the catastrophic floods come, whether it turns out to be 10 years or 30 years from now, Swain said: “I don’t want to be reflecting in retrospect that we really could have prepared for it and didn’t. Because at this point, I think the warning signs are pretty clear.”

Read more at L.A. Times.