Press Releases

Comprehensive scientific study show rising sea levels and warming temperatures threaten Maine communities and fisheries

Among climate change's many negative impacts for Maine would be sea-level rise, more extreme weather events, and coastal flooding

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree said the findings of a new, 4-year scientific assessment of climate change point to significant threats to Maine's coastal communities and economy. The report—the third National Climate Assessment (NCA)—is the product of the work of over two hundred scientists and details the likely affects of climate change: increased heat waves, more rapid melting of glaciers in Alaska, and heightened risk of coastal flooding.

"Climate change is real, it is already happening, and this report lays out in detail how these changes could effect Maine," Pingree said. "It's time we started to listen and prepare for the affects of global warming and stopped making excuses and pretending it isn't happening."

The report detailed the impacts of a warming climate on Maine and other states in the Northeast:

• Heat waves, coastal flooding, and river flooding will pose a growing challenge to the region’s environmental, social, and economic systems.
• Infrastructure will be increasingly compromised by climate-related hazards, including sea level rise, coastal flooding, and intense precipitation events.
• Agriculture, fisheries, and ecosystems will be increasingly compromised over the next century by climate change impacts. (Chapter 16)

The report says that sea level rise along our coast is expected to increase the global average and could be particularly rapid if the Gulf Stream current is weakened, which some scientists say will happen.

Scientists also warned of the impact on fisheries in New England:

From 1982 to 2006, sea surface temperature in the coastal waters of the Northeast warmed by close to twice the global rate of warming over this period. Long-term monitoring of bottom dwelling fish communities in New England revealed that the abundance of warm-water species increased, while cool-water species decreased. A recent study suggests that many species in this community have shifted their geographic distributions northward by up to 200 miles since 1968. (Chapter 24)

Pingree said the center of the lobster fishery has moved up the Maine coast in recent years, an example of the northward shift that scientists described.

"The heart of the lobster fishery keeps moving east along the coast," Pingree said. "This means that communities that have traditionally depended on lobstering will start to lose out. And an even bigger concern is the risk of warming temperatures contributing to a rapid, overall decline in the fishery, not to mention the threats to groundfish and shrimp."

The full report can be found here: www.globalchange.gov