The hemlock woolly adelgid is a tiny foreign pest with a big appetite for one of the principal conifers in New England forests.
The adelgid is just one of several damaging invaders that could expand
their range due to warming temperatures. Count Lyme disease and West
Nile virus among them. Add bumper crops of native pests like black
flies and mosquitoes to the climate-change winners.
And
a new analysis of atmospheric temperatures suggests that, thanks to us,
the prospects for the adelgid are looking fine indeed. That could hurt
brook trout, which do best in hemlock-dominated watersheds.
Climate-change
skeptics had long pointed to an apparent lag between rising ground
temperature readings and atmospheric temperatures as a key flaw that
undermined the entire theory of global warming. But a new study
released by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program has reconciled the
two data sets. The study's authors conclude that pollution is
responsible for the observed warming trend.
Climate
prediction, while based on real-world data, is inherently speculative.
The case for climate change may be a slam-dunk only in retrospect. By
then, it may be too late to head off the worst impacts. The prudent
thing to do is to take those concrete steps that we now know can slow
the growth in global-warming emissions.
The
ever-closing uncertainty gap over the role of pollution in climate
change has prompted six former Environmental Protection Agency heads,
including five who served Republican presidents, to urge President Bush
to do more to limit the coming damage.
While
Bush is unlikely to support new regulations to clamp down on pollution,
there are steps Maine is already taking to reduce our state's
global-warming contribution. And there's more that individuals can do.
These
steps, admittedly, are small and incremental. But Mainers have to be
part of a transformation in our national ethos that acknowledges the
cost of delayed action. We can take voluntary steps to reduce our
global warming contributions by changing the way we travel, generate
electricity, plan new growth and development, even in what we choose to
eat.
Maine has a lot to lose from global warming. Its long coast
and estuaries are vulnerable to sea-level rise. Rising winter
temperatures will likely hurt the skiing, snowmobiling and maple-syrup
industries.
The
warming-adelgid-trout cascade is just another reason to slow the rate
of pollution now. And in New England, the biggest sources of carbon
dioxide, the dominant greenhouse gas pollutant, are cars and trucks.
TRANSPORTATION
The best way to reduce emissions, until new low-carbon fuels become
available, is by reducing fuel consumption. That will bring other
benefits, too, like lowering gas bills, reducing road congestion, and
cutting other pollutants like ozone.
Maine
is one of 10 states that has adopted California-style emission
standards for autos and light trucks designed to reduce per-mile
vehicle emissions. If the standards survive a challenge by the Bush
administration and automakers, they are expected to cut tailpipe
greenhouse pollution 30 percent by 2016. The 10 states also account for
about a third of the domestic car market. Meeting those standards in
such a large part of the market will force car makers to improve the
cars they sell to the rest of the country.
Maine
could also do more to promote biodiesel. This year the Legislature is
considering a cut in the fuel tax for biodiesel, but diesel cars are
outlawed here.
The
state should encourage research into cellulosic ethanol, which turns
plant matter, like wood chips, into ethanol. Ethanol could be a better
fuel than biodiesel because new gasoline engines can be easily modified
to run on it. Significant hurdles in converting cellulose to alcohol
remain, however.
Maine
should increase its investment in mass transit and ride-share programs
to reduce the number of vehicle miles traveled each year. State
planners and lawmakers can develop programs to give people choices,
like expanding suburban shuttles and extending passenger rail up the
populated coast. Companies can pitch in by reviewing their
telecommuting policies.
On
the other hand, because of Maine's size and rural nature, policies that
penalize personal vehicles will never be practical here.
On
an individual level, Mainers should consider buying more fuel-efficient
cars, including hydbrids, when the time comes. Until then, regular
tuneups and proper tire inflation will help squeeze more miles per
gallon out of the existing auto fleet.
ELECTRIC GENERATION
Lawmakers are poised to take a series of needed steps toward a cleaner
energy future by passing a bill that, among other things, directs the
Public Utilities Commission to put conservation and demand-reduction
programs on equal footing in the standard-offer bidding process. The
bill is awaiting the approval of the Appropriations Committee over a
provision that would reduce fuel taxes on biodiesel. Cost: $20,000.
This ought not to be turned into a problem.
Maine
is also wise to begin considering other wind projects and evaluate one
entirely untapped source of clean energy: tidal power. One company has
submitted a proposal to federal regulators over underwater generators
that would convert the Penobscot River's current to electricity. The
state last week also announced scientists were evaluating a location in
Passamaquoddy Bay.
CLOSER TO HOME
On the local level, municipalities can play a role by discouraging
sprawl, which drives up the number of miles people travel to and from
work. As it turns out, the old New England village style of a downtown
with grocers, entertainment and other services within walking distance
is an ideal template for energy-efficient planning.
Finally,
changing how and what we eat can also help reduce fossil fuel
consumption. Most of us are unaware how much petroleum is burned to
grow and ship common foodstuffs to the market. Big agricultural
operations today depend on petroleum-based fertilizers, diesel-powered
tractors and long-haul trucking to deliver fresh food to our tables. By
eating locally, we can support New England's struggling farms while
reducing pollution.
There
is no silver bullet. Maine can't control carbon-dioxide emissions by
itself, even if every Mainer takes every possible step to reduce fossil
fuel consumption.
But
incremental actions add up over time. And if this nation wants to limit
the damage from global warming, we must each do our part.
