Miami may be the poster child of rising waters in the U.S., but further inland, states are grappling with torrential flooding that is becoming the new norm. The Great Flood of 2019 caused destroyed acres of farmland and caused billions in damage throughout the Midwest. And scientists predict that there’s more climate-related precipitation to come. What does that mean for America’s aging infrastructure?


“It’s absolutely going to fail for future climate events,” warns Martha Shulski of the Nebraska State Climate Office. “If you're not planning for the climate of 2040 or 2060 then there's going to be failure. There's going to be impacts in a very extreme way perhaps.”


What happens when there is too much water — or not enough? “The problem with water is we treat it as if it’s, you know, inexhaustible,” says Betsy Otto, Global Water Director at the World Resources Institute. How are companies and communities planning for a future of water saturation and scarcity?


Visit climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts for more information on today's episode.


Guests:

Julia Kumari Drapkin, CEO and Founder, ISeeChange

Ed Kearns, Chief Data Officer, First Street Foundation

Martha Shulski, Director, Nebraska State Climate Office; Nebraska State Climatologist

Betsy Otto, Global Water Director, World Resources Institute


Additional interview:

Jack Mulliken, farmer in Northeast Nebraska


This program was recorded on July 28 and August 4, 2020, and is generously underwritten by the Water Foundation.
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