Maine Climate Council Reports

Supporting Reports 

Scientific Assessment of Climate Change and Its Effects in Maine

The Maine Climate Council's Scientific and Technical Subcommittee was responsible for delivering a report that summarizes the impacts of climate change in Maine and how it might impact our state in the future. Their final report is part of the State Climate Action Plan. The findings from this report informed the ongoing deliberations of the Maine Climate Council and have aided the Maine Climate Council’s six working groups in the development of their draft recommended strategies. In addition, the Scientific and Technical Subcommittee identified critical scientific information gaps and needs to better understand and forecast potential future climate change impacts in the State.

Equity Subcommittee 

The Equity Subcommittee has met to discuss Maine Won’t Wait, the state’s four-year climate action plan, and to develop interim recommendations for ensuring that all Mainers can benefit from climate action. In January 2023, the Equity Subcommittee adopted its final recommendations for submission to the Maine Climate Council (PDF).

Strengthening Maine's Clean Energy Economy

The Governor’s Energy Office (GEO) and Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future (GOPIF) are required to develop a plan to identify pathways and strategies for, and pursue, the advancement of Maine’s clean energy economy. While Maine’s 10-year economic plan highlights the opportunity to grow Maine’s clean energy economy with positive impacts reaching across sectors, the strategies outlined in this Clean Energy Economy Transition Plan, in combination with the Maine Climate Council’s Climate Action Plan, will provide specific strategies to leverage Maine’s renewable energy resources and energy efficiency services to recover and grow Maine’s economy.

Assessing the Impacts Climate Change May Have on the State’s Economy, Revenues, and Investment Decisions

Eastern Research Group and Synapse Energy Economics produced the following reports analyzing the vulnerability of the State of Maine to the future impacts of climate change; the cost of doing nothing in response to climate change to the State; an emissions analysis of draft greenhouse gas reductions strategies proposed by the Working Groups; and an economic analysis of the draft emissions- and adaptation-related strategies proposed by the Working Groups (below).

The Maine Climate Council will use these reports in their consideration of the draft strategies to refine and select the strategies that will be incorporated into Maine’s Climate Action Plan.

Clean Transportation Roadmap for Light-Duty Vehicles (2021)

Reducing emissions from transportation – which is the source of more than half of all greenhouse gas emissions in Maine – is a key piece of Maine’s overall effort to curb state emissions by 45% by 2030. The state’s 2020 climate action plan, Maine Won’t Wait, set a target of 219,000 light-duty EVs on the road by 2030 to meet its emissions targets.

The roadmap, focused on light-duty vehicles, delivered recommendations to enhance the EV market in Maine, expand charging infrastructure, evaluate effects on electric utilities and the grid, and ensure an equitable and affordable transition to clean transportation for all people in Maine.

The Roadmap, was developed by by The Cadmus Group, LLC with support from E2Tech.Work on the clean transportation roadmap was led by the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future and the Governor’s Energy Office, in concert with the Maine Department of Transportation, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, the Efficiency Maine Trust, with the input of a broad range of public and industry stakeholders.

Clean Transportation Roadmap for Medium-and-Heavy-Duty Vehicles (2024)

To accelerate Maine’s transition to clean trucks and buses, state partners including the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future, Governor’s Energy Office, and Maine Department of Transportation led the creation of the Clean Transportation Roadmap for MHDVs, developed by Cambridge Systematics, with support from CALSTART, Cadmus, and Eastern Research Group. An executive summary and case studies developed as part of this roadmap are available below. 
 
Trucks and buses account for 27 percent of the greenhouse gas emissions from the state’s transportation system, and 10 percent of the state’s total emissions. Decarbonizing Maine’s trucks and buses will be critical to achieving the state’s ambitious emissions reductions goals mentioned above. This roadmap examines challenges and opportunities to decarbonize Maine’s MHDVs and establishes policy recommendations and an action plan for decarbonization.  It was developed to complement the state’s 2024 climate action plan.
 

Governor's Forest Carbon Task Force Final Report

The Governor’s Task Force on the Creation of a Forest Carbon Program has released a report with its final recommendations for maximizing carbon storage on Maine’s smaller woodlands. Established by Executive Order on January 13, 2021, the Task Force was charged with developing incentives to encourage forestland management practices that increase carbon storage specifically on woodlands of 10 to 10,000 acres while maintaining harvest levels overall.  The 10-month long process involved substantial public input and resulted in a consensus report containing wide-ranging recommendations which, if implemented, will enable Maine’s forests to contribute significantly toward achieving the state’s climate goals.

2020 Working Group Reports 

Buildings, Infrastructure and Housing Working Group
Coastal & Marine Working Group
Community Resilience, Public Health, and Emergency Management Working Group

Draft Recommendations:

Energy Working Group
Natural and Working Lands Working Group
Transportation Working Group