May 7, 2014 — From fish migrations to stronger storms overwhelming aging infrastructure, global warming is already affecting life in Maine and other New England states in alarming ways, says a new federal report aimed at pressuring policymakers to take action on climate change.
Nationwide, the warming climate is producing deeper droughts in some areas and more frequent deluges in others. The report, released Tuesday, says that more severe heat waves, coastal flooding, massive wildfires and other trends underscore the need for local, state and federal action.
“Climate change, once considered an issue for a distant future, has moved firmly into the present,” says the report’s introduction.
At more than 800 pages and involving hundreds of scientists, the National Climate Assessment report is largely a synthesis of earlier research. The White House called it “the most comprehensive scientific assessment ever generated of climate change and its impacts across every region of America.”
By the end of the century, temperatures could be up to 5 degrees higher, even if the nation acts aggressively to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It could be up to 10 degrees hotter if emissions are high, according to The Washington Post.
Read the full story at the Portland Press Herald