Notice2025-14519
Notice of Availability: A Critical Review of Impacts of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Climate
Primary source
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Published
August 1, 2025
Issuing agencies
Energy Department
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) seeks public comment on the draft report produced by DOE's Climate Working Group (CWG), titled "A Critical Review of Impacts of Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Climate" (CWG Report). DOE is seeking input from the public, especially from interested individuals and entities, such as industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, and other stakeholders. Information received may be used to assist DOE in planning the scope of future research efforts and may be shared with other Federal agencies.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 146 (Friday, August 1, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 146 (Friday, August 1, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36150-36151]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-14519]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[Docket No. DOE-HQ-2025-0207]
Notice of Availability: A Critical Review of Impacts of
Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Climate
AGENCY: Department of Energy.
ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE or the Department) seeks
public comment on the draft report produced by DOE's Climate Working
Group (CWG), titled ``A Critical Review of Impacts of Greenhouse Gas
Emissions on the U.S. Climate'' (CWG Report). DOE is seeking input from
the public, especially from interested individuals and entities, such
as industry, academia, research laboratories, government agencies, and
other stakeholders. Information received may be used to assist DOE in
planning the scope of future research efforts and may be shared with
other Federal agencies.
DATES: Written comments and information are requested on or before
September 2, 2025 and must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. eastern
time (ET) on that date. Written submissions received after the deadline
may not be considered. DOE will not reply individually to responders
but will consider all comments submitted by the deadline. DOE also
intends to summarize all comments received by topic.
ADDRESSES:
Instructions: Interested persons are encouraged to submit comments
using the Federal eRulemaking Portal at <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> under
docket number DOE-HQ-2025-0207.
Response Guidance: Any comments provided must reference the
relevant page in the CWG Report. If a comment addresses a table or
figure, that cross-reference should be provided. To assist DOE's review
of submitted comments, for each comment, please indicate a comment type
from the following list: editorial; technical; reference; or other.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information
may be submitted electronically to Mr. Joshua Loucks, U.S. Department
of Energy,1000 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20585; (202) 586-
5281 or <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d89c979d9fbdb6bdaab9b49bb7adb6abbdb498b0a9f6bcb7bdf6bfb7ae"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="074348424062696275666b4468726974626b476f762963686229606871">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The draft report titled ``A Critical Review of Impacts of
Greenhouse Gas Emissions on the U.S. Climate'' was developed by DOE's
2025 Climate Working Group, a group of five independent scientists
assembled by Energy Secretary Chris Wright with diverse expertise in
physical science, academic research and climate science. The landing
page for the CWG Report, including a press release, can be found here:
<a href="http://www.energy.gov/topics/climate">www.energy.gov/topics/climate</a>.
Overview of the CWG Report
The report reviews scientific certainties and uncertainties in how
anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO<INF>2</INF>) and other greenhouse gas
emissions have affected, or will affect, the Nation's climate, extreme
weather events, and selected metrics of societal well-being. Those
emissions are increasing the concentration of CO<INF>2</INF> in the
atmosphere through a complex and variable carbon cycle, where some
portion of the additional CO<INF>2</INF> persists in the atmosphere for
centuries.
Elevated concentrations of CO<INF>2</INF> directly enhance plant
growth, globally contributing to ``greening'' the planet and increasing
agricultural productivity. They also make the oceans less alkaline
(lower the pH). That is possibly detrimental to coral reefs, although
the recent rebound of the Great Barrier Reef suggests otherwise.
Carbon dioxide also acts as a greenhouse gas, exerting a warming
influence on climate and weather. Climate change projections require
scenarios of future emissions. There is evidence that scenarios widely-
used in the impacts literature have overstated observed and likely
future emission trends.
The world's several dozen global climate models offer little
guidance on how much the climate responds to elevated CO<INF>2</INF>,
with the average surface warming under a doubling of the CO<INF>2</INF>
concentration ranging from 1.8[deg] C to 5.7[deg] C. Data-driven
methods yield a lower and narrower range. Global climate models
generally run ``hot'' in their description of the climate of the past
few decades. The combination of overly sensitive models and implausible
extreme scenarios for future emissions yields exaggerated projections
of future warming.
Most extreme weather events in the U.S. do not show long-term
trends. Claims of increased frequency or intensity of hurricanes,
tornadoes,
[[Page 36151]]
floods, and droughts are not supported by U.S. historical data.
Additionally, forest management practices are often overlooked in
assessing changes in wildfire activity. Global sea level has risen
approximately 8 inches since 1900, but there are significant regional
variations driven primarily by local land subsidence; U.S. tide gauge
measurements in aggregate show no obvious acceleration in sea level
rise beyond the historical average rate.
Attribution of climate change or extreme weather events to human
CO<INF>2</INF> emissions is challenged by natural climate variability,
data limitations, and inherent model deficiencies. Moreover, solar
activity's contribution to the late 20th century warming might be
underestimated.
Both models and experience suggest that CO<INF>2</INF>-induced
warming might be less damaging economically than commonly believed, and
excessively aggressive mitigation policies could prove more detrimental
than beneficial. Social Cost of Carbon estimates, which attempt to
quantify the economic damage of CO<INF>2</INF> emissions, are highly
sensitive to their underlying assumptions and so provide limited
independent information.
U.S. policy actions are expected to have undetectably small direct
impacts on the global climate and any effects will emerge only with
long delays.
Confidential Business Information
Pursuant to 10 CFR 1004.11, any person submitting information that
he or she believes to be confidential and exempt by law from public
disclosure should submit via email, postal mail, or hand delivery/
courier two well-marked copies: one copy of the document marked
``confidential'' including all the information believed to be
confidential, and one copy of the document marked ``non-confidential''
with the information believed to be confidential deleted. DOE will make
its own determination about the confidential status of the information
and treat it according to its determination.
It is DOE's policy that all comments may be included in the public
docket, without change and as received, including any personal
information provided in the comments (except information deemed to be
exempt from public disclosure).
(Authority: E.O. 14154.)
Signing Authority
This document of the Department of Energy was signed on July 29,
2025, by Chris Wright, the Secretary of Energy. That document with the
original signature and date is maintained by DOE. For administrative
purposes only, and in compliance with requirements of the Office of the
Federal Register, the undersigned DOE Federal Register Liaison Officer
has been authorized to sign and submit the document in electronic
format for publication, as an official document of the Department of
Energy. This administrative process in no way alters the legal effect
of this document upon publication in the Federal Register.
Signed in Washington, DC, on July 29, 2025.
Treena V. Garrett,
Federal Register Liaison Officer, U.S. Department of Energy.
[FR Doc. 2025-14519 Filed 7-31-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
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