Getting off-island in the wintertime is always a little challenging, especially when you don't own a boat. But thankfully, we know a lot of people who do own boats, and two of them helped us out this past weekend as we had to get to a conference in Walpole. It was the next class to get us all up to speed for the STORMS program. There were a lot of talented scientists to share their knowledge with us.
And we got to see some familiar faces! Here's Jessie from Monhegan, and Paula from Isle au Haut. It's always nice to see and meet other island teachers, as we don't get together very often.
Look at those teachers raising their hands! Overachievers!
This was a rather alarming presentation about the effects from global warming that we're already experiencing, and can expect to experience in the near future. At this point, scientists are in agreement about climate change happening, and unfortunately it is happening even quicker than predicted. There are a lot of causes, and it is a natural occurrence in the geologic record, but this time around, we humans are pitching in with lots of carbon in the atmosphere, among other things. If the water continues to warm, de-salinate, and acidify.....we can kiss our lobster industry goodbye, so I was very alert for this particular talk! Another thing we can expect is more frequent and serious storms. The prediction for Maine is that, on a conservative estimate, we would be like the mid-Atlantic states, or even more likely...the same climate as Virginia!
Getting off-island in the wintertime is always a little challenging, especially when you don't own a boat. But thankfully, we know a lot of people who do own boats, and two of them helped us out this past weekend as we had to get to a conference in Walpole. It was the next class to get us all up to speed for the STORMS program. There were a lot of talented scientists to share their knowledge with us.
And we got to see some familiar faces! Here's Jessie from Monhegan, and Paula from Isle au Haut. It's always nice to see and meet other island teachers, as we don't get together very often.
Look at those teachers raising their hands! Overachievers!
This was a rather alarming presentation about the effects from global warming that we're already experiencing, and can expect to experience in the near future. At this point, scientists are in agreement about climate change happening, and unfortunately it is happening even quicker than predicted. There are a lot of causes, and it is a natural occurrence in the geologic record, but this time around, we humans are pitching in with lots of carbon in the atmosphere, among other things. If the water continues to warm, de-salinate, and acidify.....we can kiss our lobster industry goodbye, so I was very alert for this particular talk! Another thing we can expect is more frequent and serious storms. The prediction for Maine is that, on a conservative estimate, we would be like the mid-Atlantic states, or even more likely...the same climate as Virginia!
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