Global warming is unleashing in the short term the effects we expected for the short term, with all that this entails. However, it has been in the middle of 2024 when we are beginning to realize situations such as one that even the federal government is concerned about. These are the first climate refugees, located in this city that you probable have heard about.
U.S. has first climate refugees: an increasingly alarming trend
The United States has long been seen as relatively insulated from some of the more severe impacts of climate change affecting other parts of the world. But in recent years, the country has begun to experience its own climate-related disasters, from raging wildfires in the West to severe hurricanes in coastal communities.
Nowhere is this trend more apparent than in the state of Louisiana, where rising seas and powerful storms have essentially wiped entire towns off the map. One of the most striking examples is the town of Cameron, which was decimated by Hurricane Laura in 2020 and appears unlikely to ever recover.
As a result, Cameron seems destined to become one of the first American cities to fully succumb to the forces of climate change, creating a sobering new reality of “climate refugees” even in the world’s richest nation. And no, we are not talking about New Orleans, which also fears storm surge (you know what happened with Katrina).
This is the first state to evacuate citizens due to climate change
Cameron is a small town located in Cameron Parish in southwestern Louisiana along the Gulf of Mexico. With a population of just under 400 people as of the 2020 census, it is the parish seat and a major port for the region’s oil and gas industry as well as commercial fishing.
Situated in Louisiana’s coastal wetlands, Cameron’s economy has historically been dominated by the nearby oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. The parish is one of the largest oil-producing parishes in the state. Commercial fishing is also a major industry in Cameron, with shrimping, crabbing, and oyster harvesting for the economy.
Despite its small size, Cameron serves as a hub for the sparsely populated surrounding areas. Given its location on the coast, Cameron has always been vulnerable to powerful hurricanes and tropical storms. Its future has become even more uncertain in recent years as climate change leads to rising sea levels.
The small Louisiana town of Cameron has endured repeated blows from major hurricanes in recent years. In 2005, Hurricane Rita caused extensive damage and flooding throughout Cameron Parish. Just three years later in 2008, Hurricane Ike dealt another devastating hit, nearly wiping the town of Cameron off the map.
Climate change makes us more vulnerable: up to 90 % of the population is going
The increased intensity of recent hurricanes impacting Cameron, LA is likely linked to climate change. Warmer ocean temperatures provide more energy to fuel tropical storms, enabling them to strengthen into more powerful hurricanes.
According to climate scientists, hurricanes have become stronger worldwide over the past 40 years as ocean temperatures have risen. Louisiana’s coastal communities are especially vulnerable, as warmer waters in the Gulf of Mexico can feed hurricanes that make landfall in the state.
Some experts suggest climate change may also be slowing hurricanes’ forward motion, enabling them to linger longer over an area and cause more rainfall flooding. Slower storms like Hurricane Harvey in 2017 can dump historic rainfall totals.
Climate refugees in the United States are the first, but they won’t be the only ones. Remember what is happening in Tuvalu, only two meters above sea level? It is just as alarming as what is happening to many Arctic islands, threatened by the melting of the North Pole, with all that that entails, not to mention the rest of our country’s coastal communities.