Wednesday, August 12, 2026
Good morning! Climate change sits at the center of three of today’s highlighted reads. First up, there’s a sobering look at what’s happening under Georgia’s marsh mud because of sea level rise. Then we turn to how data centers eyeing the Peach State are demanding more and more electricity, most of which will be produced by burning fossil fuels. Finally, we learn that July was the hottest month on record in the continental U.S., in a year that continuing climate change will make the coolest on record going forward.
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ENVIRONMENT: NEWS
Drowning marsh
Coastal Georgians are rightfully proud of the lush salt marsh that buffers our counties and provides a nursery for shrimp and fish. But the healthy-looking marsh we see above ground belies what’s happening to the roots of the marsh grass, GPB’s Jillian Magtoto reports. She followed researcher Kyle Runion, whose studies suggest that frequent flooding from rising sea levels causes roots to decay, threatening to sink coastal ecosystems as they fail to build enough organic matter to keep pace with rising tides.
ENVIRONMENT: Q&A
Power hungry
The nonprofit Science for Georgia found that projected electricity demand from data centers will likely outpace the state’s available supply. While only 25 of 81 proposed facilities disclosed their power needs, estimates suggest requirements could reach 58 gigawatts. This surge is driven by energy-intensive AI hyperscale technology — like the data center proposed in Effingham County — prompting calls for greater transparency regarding utility contracts and resource consumption.
ENVIRONMENT: NEWS
Hotter than the Dust Bowl
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the contiguous U.S. set a record for its hottest month ever in July. Last month averaged 76.89 degrees Fahrenheit across the Lower 48 states, eclipsing the Dust Bowl’s July 1936 by an eighth of a degree. Alaska escaped the heat, but hotter than normal conditions blanketed the Lower 48, with the most excessive heat in the Mountain West, Southwest, Northern Plains and Southeast.
The biggest driver of the heat was at night, a sign of human-caused climate change. Nighttime lows, which are crucial for people and crops to recover from hot days, smashed the old record for hottest minimums by 0.7 degrees, the NOAA said.
Also noted
- An independent environmental review has given the Caesarstone property a clean bill of health, Bryan County Attorney Aaron Kappler told the county commission Tuesday. The county authorized the study after the CEO of Oklahoma-based Westwin Elements, which planned to build a nickel refinery on the site, alleged it was contaminated. Richmond Hill has since clarified that the area’s zoning prohibits a nickel refinery, and Caesarstone is in negotiations with an “entirely new partner,” Kappler told the commissioners.
- Wild Cumberland is urging supporters of Cumberland Island National Seashore to comment on “Director’s Order # 41” by the comment deadline of Aug. 14. The order affects how the Wilderness Act is implemented in more than 44 million acres of designated wilderness across the country — including the Cumberland Island Wilderness. Weakening of the order would have “profound and devastating impacts to Wilderness,” according to Wild Cumberland.
- Forecasters from NOAA’s National Weather Service last week updated their forecast for the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season. They expect 7-13 named storms (with winds of 39 mph or greater), of which 2-6 could become hurricanes (winds of 74 mph or greater), including 0-2 major hurricanes (winds of 111 mph or greater). These ranges cover the entire season from June 1 through November 30 and are inclusive of the two tropical storms that have already formed, Arthur and Bertha.
- Megan Desrosiers, the founding president and CEO of the Coastal Georgia environmental advocacy group One Hundred Miles, announced on Monday she’ll be leaving the organization at the end of the year. The nonprofit is conducting a nationwide search for her replacement.
- For a free show this week, look up. The Perseid meteor shower is reaching its peak. Under a dark sky with no moon, skywatchers frequently report 90 meteors per hour, or more, according to EarthSky.com, which also suggests watching in the hours before dawn.
- The City of Savannah’s Office of Sustainability is accepting applications through Sept. 11, 2026, for the Bloomberg Philanthropies Youth Climate Action Fund. Open to ages 15 to 24, and eligible youth-serving organizations, the funding supports ideas that advance local climate action. Savannah will host a virtual information session from 6:30-7:30 p.m. Aug. 12. For details visit savannahga.gov/youthclimate.
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The grass looks healthy. But most of Georgia’s marshes are losing their roots to sea level rise
Researcher Kyle Runion is studying how frequent flooding and lost belowground biomass contribute to the risk of marsh drowning across Georgia’s coastline.
Contiguous US breaks its record for hottest month ever, NOAA says
The contiguous United States experienced its hottest July on record last month, surpassing the extreme temperatures of the 1936 Dust Bowl era.
Georgia data centers likely to demand more energy than the state can provide
The nonprofit Science for Georgia found that projected electricity demand from dozens of proposed data centers in Georgia could reach between 29 and 58 gigawatts, potentially outpacing the state’s current power supply.
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