PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 18, 2023
Maine’s winter is nearly two weeks shorter than it was a century ago, and we’re projected to lose a similar number of days within the next 30 years. It’s not negotiable that the warming poles are already responsible for food insecurity, heat waves and cyclones around the world. At what time do we decide the climate is not an issue for today? The failure of China and India to cut fossil fuels is globally cataclysmic. In Maine, we too rely on snowpack. As winters retreat, it’s not just our winter recreation that suffers either (although it serves as a foundation for our billion-dollar tourist economy). Warm winters cascade into springs and summers with changes in our biodiversity – from ticks that latch on to deer and moose to mass die-offs in brook trout. ~ Susana Hancock is an international climate scientist and polar explorer living in Maine