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The Effects Of Climate Change Are Already Impacting North Carolinians

WUNC | By Frank Stasio,
Stacia Brown
Published October 22, 2020 at 12:08 PM EDT
Carteret is one of the North Carolina counties that has seen an uptick in vibrio infections since 2007.
Carteret is one of the North Carolina counties that has seen an uptick in vibrio infections since 2007.

It’s estimated that annual average temperatures in North Carolina will rise between 2 and 5 degrees by the middle of this century, and 2019 was the warmest year on record for the state. This heat has already had a significant impact on farmworkers, who have reported noticing both an increase in temperatures outdoors while working and afterwards, in lodging that does not offer relief from evenings that are trending increasingly warmer. 

Host Frank Stasio talks to reporters Adam Wagner, Aaron Sanchez-Guerra and Sammy Fretwell about the human toll of climate change in North Carolina.

Host Frank Stasio talks to News and Observer reporter Aaron Sánchez-Guerra and Report for America fellow Adam Wagner about farmworkers and heat-related illness.

Sammy Fretwell, environmental reporter for The State in South Carolina, also joins Stasio to discuss an increase in reported vibrio bacteria cases. The toxic germ is still considered uncommon, but the increase in its presence in the Carolinas is related to warmer coastal water temperatures and rising sea levels. Each reporter is featured in the seven-part series, “Danger Beyond the Beach: Climate change and its toll on health in the Carolinas,” a partnership of The News and Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina; The State in Columbia, South Carolina; the Columbia Journalism School; and the Center for Public Integrity.

Copyright 2020 North Carolina Public Radio
Frank Stasio
Longtime NPR correspondent Frank Stasio was named permanent host of The State of Things in June 2006. A native of Buffalo, Frank has been in radio since the age of 19. He began his public radio career at WOI in Ames, Iowa, where he was a magazine show anchor and the station's News Director.
See stories by Frank Stasio
Stacia Brown
Stacia Brown comes to WUNC from Washington, DC, where she was a producer for WAMU’s daily news radio program, 1A. She’s the creator and host of two podcasts, The Rise of Charm City and Hope Chest. Her audio projects have been featured on Scene on Radio, a podcast of the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University; BBC 4’s Short Cuts; and American Public Radio’s Terrible, Thanks for Asking.
See stories by Stacia Brown