The U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) Climate Adaptation Science Centers “are expected to drastically wind down and possibly close” after September 30, 2025, according to center employees. The long-standing centers conduct research on “how to protect the nation’s resources on a warming planet, receiving bipartisan support from many lawmakers and supporting hunting and fishing communities, water and transportation agency officials, and tribes.” Despite their widespread support, multiple centers were informed that they would lose their funding from the Department of the Interior.
The Department of the Interior has cited the federal government shutdown as the reason for the lack of funding, but employees of the centers claim that “Interior Department officials have not approved paperwork that would help fund them for another five years,” which is required even if the centers are reauthorized by Congress. Further, they claim that they “have also been unable to spend money on traveling, publishing papers, or funding new projects without approval.”