Climate center in NC shuts down after lapse in funding from Trump administration
A regional climate center that provides data to meteorologists, scientists and farmers in North Carolina has ceased operations, after a halt in funding from the Trump administration.
The Southeast Regional Climate Center, which is housed at UNC-Chapel Hill, announced Thursday that its federal funding had lapsed, leading it to cease providing climate data.
“It is unknown when or if funding will resume, pending decisions by NOAA and the Department of Commerce,” the SERCC’s website states. “If there are particular products and services that you rely upon, please contact us at sercc@sercc.com or reach out to your federal representatives and communicate their value and why you need them.”
In addition to North Carolina, SERCC serves five other states. It’s one of six such climate centers across the country.
The centers are managed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which President Donald Trump has targeted for over 1,000 job cuts, the AP reported. Already, the agency has fired hundreds of workers, Reuters reported. And records obtained by Science magazine describe plans to ask Congress to eliminate some NOAA climate research programs and cut hundreds of scientists who study the subject.
WRAL, which provides regular weather forecasts to Triangle residents, said it relies on SERCC data for information on pollen, soil temperatures and seasonal trends.
“It’s a crucial piece of data that we get that we like to share with our viewers that right now we just don’t have access to,” WRAL meteorologist Aimee Wilmoth said on air.
As NOAA assesses which services to keep amid Trump and DOGE’s massive cuts to the federal bureaucracy, it could choose to approve another year of funding for the SERCC. However, that would have to be approved by the U.S. Department of Commerce, which administers NOAA’s funding.
Three other regional climate centers in the Midwest and South shut down this week.
The cuts to NOAA come six months after Helene as scientists predict yet another brutal hurricane season this year, with AccuWeather forecasting three to five major hurricanes.
