WASHINGTON (July 16, 2025) -- The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has paused development of Atlas 15, a vital tool designed to assess current storm risks and project future impacts under climate change scenarios.
Civil engineers, planners, and policymakers have long anticipated Atlas 15 to provide standardized precipitation data necessary for infrastructure planning and regulation. While some private groups may be able to develop their own predictions of extreme rainfall, NOAA’s estimates serve as a national benchmark.
Experts from George Washington University are available to discuss how climate change is intensifying storms as well as potential implications of delaying this tool. To schedule an interview with an expert, please contact GW Media Relations at gwmedia
gwu [dot] edu (gwmedia[at]gwu[dot]edu).
Public Health
Susan Anenberg is director of the GW Climate & Health Institute and associate professor of environmental and occupational health. Her research focuses on the health implications of air pollution and climate change. Recently her team published two studies finding links between health problems like asthma and exposure to polluted air.
Gaige Kerr is a senior research scientist and professorial lecturer in the department of environmental and occupational health at the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health. He researches ambient air pollution, and projects he has led span topics ranging from understanding the emission sources of pollution to assessing the health impacts experienced by populations, with a special emphasis on understanding associated ethnoracial and socioeconomic disparities.
Elizabeth Andrade, is an assistant professor of prevention and community health at the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health. She was part of a team of GW researchers who conducted the most comprehensive study of the impact of Hurricane Maria on Puerto Rico. She can talk about power outages associated with hurricanes and how they can be particularly deadly for older adults and people who are managing a chronic condition.
Climate Change
Lisa Benton-Short is a Professor Emerita of geography at the GW Columbian College of Arts & Sciences who studied urban sustainability, environmental issues in cities, and cities and immigration. Benton-Short can discuss the impact of climate change in amplifying natural disasters and the underlying forces at play that amplify the impacts of natural disasters. She can also speak to the steps that can be taken to help make cities and communities more resilient in the face of natural disasters.
Housing, Insurance & Natural Disasters
Stephen O’Connor, research professor of real estate at the GW School of Business and the chair of The Center for Real Estate and Urban Analysis at GW, has 30 plus years of professional real estate experience with a background in planning and public policy. O’Connor can discuss how climate change is impacting the insurance industry, how communities are adapting to disaster-prone areas (i.e., some towns are trying to change their zoning to encourage development in less-prone areas), and how other places are implementing buy-back strategies.
Disaster Management
Joseph Barbera, associate professor of engineering management and systems engineering, is a board-certified emergency physician with a 35-year history in developing emergency response systems and responding to local, national, and international emergencies and disasters. He has extensive experience participating in the management of response to earthquakes, tsunamis, and hurricanes, such as Katrina in 2005. Through the GW Institute for Crisis, Disaster, and Risk Management, he studies disaster response and recovery, risk management, and business continuity.
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