How is sport affected by climate change?
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In this article, we’ll explore why climate change is affecting sports, how different sporting disciplines are being impacted, and what the industry is doing in response.
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Climate Change in Florida
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As the past year has shown that climate change in Florida is continuing to have a profound effect on the 22 million people who live there, climate change in Florida is becoming an exemplary topic to highlight the ongoing climate crisis in the United States – and the world.
In the 2024 alone, Florida was witness to Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton – both of which caused insurmountable damage to infrastructure, power lines, and took several lives.
In this article, we’ll break down why climate change in Florida is a growing problem and what can be done to protect the sunshine state moving forward.
Why is climate change happening in Florida?
Climate change in Florida is happening for the same reason that other regions around the world are experiencing skyrocketing temperatures and sporadic weather patterns – it’s a result of the increase of human activity and carbon emissions.
💡As previously explained by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), human activity is the primary cause behind rising emissions and greenhouse gases – as modernised or excessive travel, industrialisation, and consumption drastically increase the amount of air pollution and overall global warming
“ I have a lot of climate concerns that keep me up at night... My initial concern has come from worrying about what of the natural world and a livable climate is going to be kind of left for my children and their children. – (Sarah Edwards, Florida resident and environmental advocate). ”
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How do Floridians feel about climate change?
Ultimately, the perception of climate change in Florida is a mixed bag – as according to Florida Climate Resilient Surveys, 61% of Floridians are concerned regarding excessive flooding and 68% of Floridians believe the that intensity of hurricanes is increasing as a result of climate change in Florida.
Regardless of these statistics on climate change in Florida, as whole – many residents of the state are concerned about rising sea levels and the increasing frequency and severity of hurricanes – especially as Florida battled Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton within a short time frame at the tail end of 2024.
Florida as a whole has been referred as “ground zero” for climate change and sea level rise in the United States, as the entire state’s population and economy is contingent on it not going underwater – where cities like Miami are already estimated to be 60% underwater by 2060.
👉 Ultimately, climate change in Florida is occurring as a result of an increase of man-made emissions – leaving state officials and Floridians alike divided on how to handle its currently bleak climate future.
What have been the worst effects of climate change in Florida?
Over the past few years, Florida has been subject to excessive sea level rise, flooding, and stronger hurricanes – both of which have left the state more vulnerable to the long-term effects of climate change.
💡Between 2020 and 2024, nine hurricanes struck the sunshine state – causing a cumulative $244.5 billion in damages and a devastating 450 fatalities. This illustrates just how much climate change is having an evident long-term, heartbreaking effect on Florida.
“ Floridians believe in climate change more than other Americans. Makes sense. This is the state where we had historic, destructive rainfall... – (Miami Herald Editorial Board). ”
Here’s a breakdown of some of the ways climate change in Florida has been the most impactful:
Sea level rise
As Florida has a low elevation and is predominantly surrounded by water, the state remains exceptionally to rising sea levels – potentially threatening billions of dollars of infrastructure and real-estate alike.
💡In fact, a mere one-foot rising sea level could result in $4 billion dollars of property damage in Southeast Florida – ultimately deterring future tourism or vacation rentals from existing in the state, which continue to serve as a major source of income for Florida.
While the economic impact of sea level rise in Florida may appear to be the most significant, the health and social effects of rising sea levels are just as worrisome. For instance, sea level rise is bound to affect lower-income communities in Florida and contribute to the risk of climate migration.
In addition to this, rising sea levels in Florida could impact freshwater resources in the state – especially in Southern Florida where many residents rely on the Bisayne Aquifer for water, where over 300 million gallons of water are pumped out every single day for both drinking and recreational purposes.
Flooding in Florida
The increase of severe storms and rising sea levels in Florida also contribute to excessive flooding in the state, which could lead to even more economic damages and social challenges.
For example, flooding in Florida caused by heavy rainfall and hurricanes have caused higher flood insurance prices – making it more challenging for households and businesses to protect themselves from the ongoing threat of hurricanes.
💡 In fact, the floods from Hurricane Ian resulted in 150 indirect deaths in Florida – illustrating how severe flooding in of itself if just as dangerous as hurricanes and sea level rise.
Flooding in Florida could also cause:
- Difficulties in evacuating in the midst of another emergency
- Increased risk of respiratory illness as mold exposure will increase alongside additional moisture from flooding
- The spread of various diseases and put additional stress on the already-strained healthcare system in the U.S.
- Long-term and increasingly scary flooding could provoke eco-anxiety and other mental health disorders
Rising Temperatures
Florida, known as the sunshine state, is known for its year round beautiful weather – but climate change in Florida is starting to threaten the once temperament temperatures that residents and vacation goers alike have enjoyed for years.
This is because, as a result of climate change in Florida, the state has noticed an increase in average temperatures – as the state as saw an annual 3.5°F increase since 1950, which well exceeds the overall global average increase of 2.7°F since 1950.
👉 These rising temperatures in Florida could provoke excessive heat waves, which can spur long-term effects to Floridian’s mental and physical health.
Hurricane Helene
Hurricane Helene started on September 26th, 2024 as a Category 4 hurricane – and caused massive damage which caused power outages and even took lives to people who worked in factories.
💡In fact, the extensive damage caused by Hurricane Helene inspired social media influencers to share the current impact of the hurricane, as an effort to encourage future presidents of the United States to develop more sufficient federal resources for hurricane relief.
As a result, Hurricane Helene was named one of the deadliest storms of the 21st century – with over 230 deaths across six states in the Southeastern region of the United States.
Hurricane Milton
Not even two weeks later, another strong hurricane hit Florida, known as Hurricane Milton, hit the usually safe city of Tampa – eliciting strong winds of 180mph and caused the mayor to announce a city-wide evacuation plan.
💡Although Hurricane Milton made landfall near Siesta Key, Florida, it left 3 million households and businesses across the state without power – demonstrating how these increasingly ferocious storms can have an impact on the state’s economy and education long-term.
However, the most profound ripple effect of Hurricane Milton may have been the viral video of a meteorologist who grew emotional at the thought of global warming causing these horrific hurricanes – as it elicited people to pay more attention to the increasingly high risk and negative effects of climate change in Florida and the impact natural disasters will continue to have on the rest of the world.
👉 Ultimately, climate change in Florida has been more prevalent than ever before as the effects of sea level rise, flooding, and intense hurricanes are causing cumulative damage.
Is there effective climate change policy in Florida?
Although the majority of Floridians believe in global warming and that climate change in Florida is real, the state itself is politically divided on how to handle the ongoing effects of climate change in Florida – as Democrats remain confident that the need for effective policy is in order, whereas Republicans aren’t in full agreement on how to tackle climate change in Florida.
💡For instance, only 46% of Republicans are in favor of climate change education in schools – demonstrating how half of one of two major political parties in the United States remain wary of bringing greater awareness to climate change in Florida.
“ I got involved in politics because I could see the environment not being addressed—the climate emergency—nobody's doing anything about it. – Russell Conn, who serves as a resident and chair of the Democratic Environmental Caucus of Florida. ”
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What is climate change policy like in Florida in 2025?
As of 2025, statewide initiatives to curb climate change in Florida continue to be put on the backburner as a result of the ongoing politicisation of climate change in the United States – with Florida even trying to forbid the terms “climate change” and global warming”.
However, Ron DeSantis, governor of Florida – has made an effort to make Florida more resilient in the midst of more strenuous hurricanes and negative effects of climate change. For example, DeSantis signed an executive order to address various environmental issues in Florida – such as rising sea levels.
Together, Ron DeSantis and Florida have also established the following:
- DeSantis appointed a Chief Science Officer to help monitor and better understand future research and analysis
- DeSantis developed the Office of Resilience and Coastal Protection to help vulnerable communities cope with rising sea levels
“ This idea of, quote, climate change has become politicised…My environmental policy is just to try to do things that benefit Floridians. (Ron DeSantis on his approach to climate change in Florida). ”
👉 As a whole, climate change in Florida is worsening – and while there are building blocks for effective action at the moment, there aren’t enough policies in place to help mitigate climate change at the root of the cause.
What could be done to prevent climate change in Florida?
In order to prevent climate change in Florida, more drastic actions would need to be taken in the state to incentivise residents of Florida from contributing to the rise of greenhouse gas emissions which are spurring rising temperatures, hurricanes, and sea level rise.
💡 In this case, Florida is almost like the flip side of the coin from what we are seeing in California – a state that is also prone to natural disasters induced by climate change, such as with the recent 2025 Los Angeles wildfires.
However, the difference between California and Florida is that California has made a continuous effort to employ effective climate legislation to tackle climate change at the root of the cause – whereas Florida has focused on efforts to build resilience for communities or provide support after a devastating natural disaster hits.
The answer to protecting Florida from future, worsening negative effects of climate change would be to employ more eco-friendly habits across the state.
Here are some ways we could safeguard climate change in Florida moving forward:
- Greater Climate Legislation – Florida could take the lead from California and employ greater measures to mitigate excess emissions in the state. For example, similar to Los Angeles, cities in Florida such as Miami depend on cars as the primary mode of transportation. Florida could employ similar legislation to California by banning the sale of gasoline powered cars by 2035.
- Boost Public Transportation – Jobs in the state of Florida could incentivise residents in cities like Jacksonville, Tampa, and Miami to use public transportation more often – especially if their jobs offer them a stipend to use buses instead of driving their personal vehicles.
- Encourage Eco-Friendly Beach Days – Florida is a beach haven for residents and travellers alike, but as a whole – beach days can sometimes contribute to plastic waste or other environmental repercussions. Therefore, Florida could increase its signage on beaches to encourage beach goers to reduce their water consumption when showering off sand and to warn them of potential fines for plastic littering.
Overall, climate change in Florida is real – but the future of the state is in the hands of government officials, Floridians, and everyone who plans to visit the state. The next time that you take a trip to Disney World or one of Florida’s beautiful beaches, remember that beauty is skin deep – and climate change in Florida continues to be a menacing threat to the state.
What About Greenly?
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At Greenly we can help you to assess your company’s carbon footprint, and then give you the tools you need to cut down on emissions. We offer free demo for you to better understand our platform and all that it has to offer – including assistance on how to reduce emissions, optimise energy efficiency, and more to help you get started on your climate journey.
Learn more about Greenly’s carbon management platform here.
Sources
Government Census https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/FL/PST045223
Palm Beach Post https://web.archive.org/web/20230405192015/https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/opinion/editorial-gov-scott-irma-leadership-undercut-his-climate-denial/44qVCYgU4Wg6kWlwzVpW1J/
ABC News https://abcnews.go.com/US/desantis-addresses-climate-change-impacts-source-analysis/story?id=90755697
Miami Herald https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/editorials/article280982213.html
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/environment/climate-change/article275743456.html
https://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/editorials/article280982213.html
WUSF https://www.wusf.org/environment/2021-09-22/floridians-and-climate-change-we-have-a-lot-of-work-to-do
https://www.wusf.org/environment/2021-09-22/floridians-and-climate-change-we-have-a-lot-of-work-to-do
Centre for Environmental Studies https://www.ces.fau.edu/ces-bepi/index.php
Inside Climate News https://insideclimatenews.org/news/13032014/climate-change-showdown-florida-governors-race/
NBC Miami https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/will-miami-be-underwater-someday/3119902/
Our Children Trust https://www.ourchildrenstrust.org/blog/floridas-water-reckoning-and-the-rising-cost-of-climate-change
Invading Sea https://www.theinvadingsea.com/2018/09/10/florida-future-fund-needed-to-help-the-states-residents-cope-with-threats-to-the-environment-and-their-health
Naple News https://eu.naplesnews.com/story/weather/hurricanes/2024/10/28/hurricane-milton-date-florida-landfall-path-damage/75889915007/
OSBM https://www.osbm.nc.gov/hurricane-helene-dna/open
CNN https://edition.cnn.com/2024/10/05/us/helene-death-toll-rises-saturday/index.html
DailyMail https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13932985/hurricane-milton-live-updates-tracker-path-florida.html
Demos https://www.demos.org/research/economic-and-environmental-impacts-climate-change-florida
NHC https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/data/tcr/AL092022_Ian.pdf
Florida Center for Investigative Reporting http://fcir.org/2015/03/08/in-florida-officials-ban-term-climate-change/
Florida Climate Center https://climatecenter.fsu.edu/topics/climate-change
Madeira Beach Florida https://madeirabeachfl.gov/madeira-beach-gets-tough-on-litter/
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