UMaine report cited in Free Press article on climate change preparedness
The University of Maine report, “Maine’s Climate Future: 2015 Update,” was cited in a Free Press article on climate change preparedness. The “States at Risk Project,” a collaboration of the climate science news organization Climate Central and consulting firm ICF International, recently gave Maine a grade of D for the state’s efforts to prepare for climate change–related weather events, according to the article. “Maine faces growing threat levels from extreme heat, drought, inland flooding, and coastal flooding between now and 2050,” wrote the report’s authors. “Maine is working to address its current climate risks, with the exception of extreme heat. While it has begun to prepare for how climate change could impact its threats, more preparedness effort is needed.” According to the UMaine report, the sea level is rising at a rate of 0.07 inches per year, which is much faster than any time in the past 5,000 years. This winter, the Legislature’s Environment and Natural Resources Committee will likely vote on a measure sponsored by Rep. Mick Devin of Newcastle to take sea level rise predictions into consideration when developing state-funded projects on the coast or in a flood zone, the article states. Devin also is a researcher and shellfish hatchery manager at UMaine’s Darling Marine Center.