AUGUSTA - Legislation sponsored by Rep. Morgan Rielly, D-Westbrook, to study establishing the Maine Climate Corps was voted on in a work session before the Legislature's Environment and Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday. The bill, LD 722, Resolve, To Study the Establishment of the Maine Climate Corps, received unanimous committee support.
The legislation directs the Maine Commission for Community Service to identify short-term projects and tasks in state agencies that could serve as prospective service projects for Maine residents interested in tackling the state's climate crisis. LD 722 was proposed in response to the suggestion of a Maine Climate Corps in the Maine Climate Council's climate action plan, Maine Won't Wait: A Four-year Plan for Climate Action.
According to the report, Maine may warm by 2 to 4 degrees by 2050 and up to 10 degrees by 2100, depending on our greenhouse gas mitigation efforts. The Maine Climate Corps will help foster broad support and interest in addressing climate change, in addition to creating community-based projects to address the issue locally.
"Addressing the climate crisis should not fall solely on one generations shoulders," said Rielly. "The Maine Climate Corps will be an intergenerational movement that will effectively address these complex issues, help mitigate pending climate disasters and maintain the health of our lands, resources and community members."
Rielly is serving his first term in the Maine House of Representatives as a member of the Joint Standing Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs. He represents a portion of Westbrook.
Contact:
Jackie Merrill [Rielly], c. 812-1111