One year into Maine’s Climate Action Plan, officials are launching new programs to help towns cut carbon emissions and adapt to the effects of warming temperatures. 

The four-year plan aims to get the state to net-zero carbon emissions by 2045, among other goals in line with what scientists say is necessary to prevent the worst effects of climate change. 

Governor Janet Mills last week unveiled a $20 million Infrastructure Adaptation Fund under the state Department of Transportation. It will help municipalities and tribal governments upgrade their water systems to handle increased flooding, worsening storms and rising seas. 

Mills also announced a $4.75 million Community Resilience Partnership, which will open in January, to support local climate action plans, emissions-cutting projects and resilience work. 

Easton town manager and Maine Municipal Association president James Gardner said in a state press release that the state climate plan and programs like these provide a blueprint for collaborating on “meaningful change.” 

“Building community resiliency to climate change requires bold action, strong partnerships and investment in financial and technical assistance that municipalities need to implement solutions," Gardner said. “I thank Governor Mills for taking the time necessary to build partnerships with municipal leaders across Maine, who are eager to address the negative impacts of climate change.”

The state is also touting tens of thousands of heat pumps installed so far under the climate plan, as well as record electric vehicle registrations, rebates and charging stations added in 2021. 

Maine regulators will release their next greenhouse gas inventory early next year, showing the areas where governments, businesses and residents must cut back the most in order to meet the state’s ambitious goals. Maine’s top sources of emissions overall are transportation and home heating, especially from heating oil, which is more prevalent here than in any other state. 

Maine’s climate council is required to update the action plan every four years. They’ve been meeting regularly since 2019. The Department of Environmental Protection has also been proposing rules aimed at lowering emissions, including mandates for electric truck sales. 

Also last week, the state launched a new website aimed at informing the public more about the climate action plan, which is titled Maine Won’t Wait. 

An exclusive Spectrum News/Ipsos poll in September found that 88% of a sample of registered Maine Democrats and 23% of a similar group of Republicans supported Mills’ carbon-neutral order, while a larger share of respondents were unsure about the plan.