PORTLAND, Maine - This year's mild winter made travel easier and kept heating costs down. So what was not to like about it?
"This had a devastating impact on our beloved winter traditions, including skiing, snowshoeing, ice fishing and snowmobiling, among other things that Maine families have enjoyed for generations." says Todd Martin, of the Natural Resources Council of Maine.
Martin was among those attending a Portland press conference today to detail how businesses and communities were hurt economically by the lack of snow. Officials at Allspeed Cyclery and Snow in Portland, which hosted the news conference, said the company's ski service business was way off.
Portland Mayor Ethan Strimling said the warm winter has hurt some businesses and disrupted lifestyles.
"Whether it's Riverside Golf Course, and people being there to be able to cross-country ski, or Deering Oaks Park - people being able to ice skate - these are winter activities that are really important to an urban environment, being able to get outside and be able to exercise. And we saw that we weren't able to have that occur as much in our city this year, and that's scary."
Strimling said the warm winter makes it more urgent for a new city committee to work out ways to adapt to the warming climate, even as it comes up with ways to reduce Portland's impact on climate change.
