“Something Just Shifted at the Highest Levels of U.S. Government”
Trump dismantles a top U.S. climate research center, sparking backlash over climate science, public safety, and America’s role in weather forecasting.
The Trump administration is shutting down a research center that has been called the "crown jewel" of climate research, accusing it of "spreading alarm" about climate change.
Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, said the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado, would be phased out under the auspices of the National Science Foundation.
"This facility is one of the biggest sources of climate alarmism in the country," he wrote in a social media post. "A full review is underway, and any essential activities, such as weather research, will be transferred to another location or entity."
The announcement was the latest in a series of climate-skeptic moves by the administration, which has vowed to eliminate "Green New Deal research activities."
It was sharply criticized by climate experts, who said the Colorado center was renowned for its advancements in studying weather patterns, including tropical cyclones.
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Roger Pielke Jr., a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute think tank, told USA Today, which first reported the news, that the facility "is a crown jewel of the American scientific enterprise and should be improved, not shut down."
He added: "If the U.S. is going to be a global leader in atmospheric science, it cannot afford to make petty and vindictive decisions based on the heated politics of climate change."
The move was also criticized by Colorado Governor Jared Polis, who said it would "jeopardize public safety."
"Climate change is real, but NCAR's work is about far more than climate science," he said. "NCAR provides data on severe weather events like fires and floods that helps our country save lives and property, and protects families from devastation." The center employs approximately 830 people and includes the Mesa Laboratory in Boulder, which Watt said would be closed. It also operates two aircraft for atmospheric research and manages a government-owned supercomputing facility in Wyoming.
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The decision to eliminate it aligns with Donald Trump's statements calling climate change a "hoax" or "myth."
According to USA Today, the White House has accused the center of following a "woke agenda" and has identified several projects that administration officials deem wasteful and unnecessary. These include a Rising Voices Center for Indigenous and Earth Sciences, which aims to "make science more welcoming, inclusive, and justice-centered," as well as research on wind turbines, an innovation that Trump has repeatedly criticized.
The administration has already proposed a 30% cut to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's funding, which would reduce spending on its climate, weather, and ocean laboratories, which work to improve forecasting and better understand weather patterns.
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