Coast Guard rescue missions failing after running into unexpected currents. Surprise atmospheric river storms flooding downtown San Francisco. Seafood contaminated by unseen algal blooms. California scientists fear these scenarios, and more, are possible under the Trump administration’s recommendation to reduce the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s budget by $1.7 billion. Several scientific programs in California are slated for significant reductions or elimination if the budget proposal is pushed through Congress. Scientists say the cuts would hamper weather forecasting, disrupt critical ocean data collection and decimate climate research.

Other NOAA news:

• The Denver Post: ‘Trainwreck’ of NOAA funding cuts could derail Colorado research on wildfires, earthquakes and storms
• John Fleck at Inkstain: Blog: Wrecking ball report: Western Water Assessment​
• NPR: Scientists say NOAA cuts by Trump undermine improvements in hurricane forecasts
• E&E News by Politico: Trump admin hit with public records lawsuit over NOAA cuts​