A new report on the impact of climate change on Maine reaffirms that the state will get hotter, wetter and experience more intense storms in coming years.
The 267-page scientific assessment of climate change and its effects in Maine is a deep dive into changes the state experiences as the world heats up. It details the toll that global heating from burning fossil fuels has across Maine, including the state’s marine and forest ecosystems, economy, human health, agriculture and biodiversity.
By 2050, Maine’s temperatures will be at least two degrees hotter than they are today, according to the report. The future state will have a shorter cold season and longer summer. Sea levels will rise more than a foot. And weather will swing between extremes, with heavier downpours, drier droughts and more intense winter storms, researchers predict.
Ivan Fernandez, a study editor and University of Maine professor said the study builds on a council report from four years ago. And it shows that trends that contributed to devastating storms this winter and searing heat this week are picking up speed.
“Most of the indicators of climate change are continuing, most are actually accelerating, solutions are accelerating but not fast enough and business as usual is not an option,” Fernandez says.
While some of the report’s projections are little changed from the previous assessment, they seem more relevant after the wakeup call from this winter’s storms, said climate council co-chair Hannah Pingree. The state has now seen the extreme precipitation events and crushing storm surges the earlier report warned about, she says.
“I think what’s new is that we are not just talking about predictions, but we are talking about science that is happening before our very eyes,” Pingree says.
The report will guide the climate council as it updates Maine’s climate action plan, due out late this year. Draft recommendations include changes to transportation, energy, building and land policies to reduce Maine’s greenhouse gas emissions and help communities brace for, and adapt to, a new climate reality.
