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“Unveiling Maine’s updated plan to respond to the global climate crisis, Gov. Janet Mills said the state will continue working to lower emissions and mitigate risk ‘no matter who’s in the White House.’
At a press conference at Morse High School in Bath on Thursday afternoon, Mills, along with state and city officials, highlighted the progress the state has made under the current climate action plan, Maine Won’t Wait, in expanding clean energy and reducing carbon emissions.
They also emphasized the importance of the state renewing its commitment to solutions that include addressing food waste, building sustainable housing and transportation systems, and transitioning away from fossil fuels.
Despite concerns about the incoming Trump administration’s pledges to pull out of the Paris climate accord, roll back environmental regulations and halt funding for clean energy programs, Mills said Maine would continue its work along with 23 other governors as part of the U.S. Climate Alliance.”
Launched on June 1, 2017 by the governors of Washington, New York, and California to help fill the void left by the previous administration’s decision to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement, the Alliance has grown to include 24 governors from across the U.S. representing approximately 60% of the U.S. economy and 55% of the U.S. population. Governors in the Alliance have pledged to collectively reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 26-28% by 2025, 50-52% by 2030, and 61-66% by 2035, all below 2005 levels, and collectively achieve overall net-zero greenhouse gas emissions as soon as practicable, and no later than 2050.
The Alliance’s states and territories continue to demonstrate that climate action goes hand-in-hand with economic growth, job creation, and better public health. The Alliance reduced its collective net greenhouse gas emissions by 19% between 2005 and 2022, while increasing collective GDP by 30%, and is on track to meet its near-term climate goal by reducing collective GHG emissions 26% below 2005 levels by 2025. The coalition’s states and territories are employing more workers in the clean energy sector, achieving lower levels of dangerous air pollutants, and preparing more effectively for climate impacts and executing more pre-disaster planning than the rest of the country.
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