UC San Diego-Led Assessment: Climate Change Is Imposing Tens of Billions in Economic Costs on California
A statewide assessment released in October 2026 with leadership from the University of California San Diego finds that climate change is already raising economic costs across California, from heat-related illness and deaths to lost work hours and higher insurance and utility bills. The report is one of four statewide topical reports in California's Fifth Climate Change Assessment, a multiyear effort led by the Governor's Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation with state, academic, tribal and community partners; the economy report was led by Gordon McCord and Teevrat Garg of UC San Diego's School of Global Policy and Strategy.
Drawing on published research, the report estimates that by 2050 California could see about 560 additional heat-related deaths each year, representing roughly $7.7 billion in annual economic impact, and that under a high-warming scenario wildfire smoke exposure could cause about 5,060 additional deaths a year, representing about $68.8 billion annually. By the early 2040s, drought-related water shortages could cause $2.7 billion to $5.1 billion in direct agricultural losses each year, and roughly 20 inches of sea-level rise, which could occur as soon as 2050, could inundate an estimated $17.9 billion worth of residential and commercial buildings. Heat is also projected to cut 5 to 10 work hours a year for highly exposed workers in the Central Valley by 2050 and 15 to 20 hours in southeastern California, with burdens falling hardest on inland regions, low-income households and outdoor workers.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：UC San Diego 的 Geisel 图书馆（资料图）。照片：Stephen Bay，CC BY 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Geisel Library at UC San Diego (file photo). Photo: Stephen Bay, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
