Hannah Pingree, director of Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future, explains the Maine Climate Council’s mission at a workshop Tuesday at the Lewiston Public Library. Frida Zeinali/Sun Journal
LEWISTON — The Maine Climate Council began its statewide tour Tuesday night at the Lewiston Public Library with a question in mind: “What does successful climate action in Maine mean to you?”
Attendees had a chance to answer that question and others as the council held the first of five workshops this month in an effort to hear Mainers’ concerns about the climate.
The first draft of Maine’s next climate action plan for the next four years, Maine Won’t Wait, was met with criticism for lacking resolve around certain targets, such as transportation emissions. The council is on the road to hear what efforts Mainers want to rally around to combat climate change.
“We have specific goals in law to reduce emissions 45% by 2030 and at least 80% by 2050 to help our state on the path to carbon neutrality,” Hannah Pingree, director of Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future, said. “We need to think about how we prepare our communities, our people, and our economy for the impact of climate.”
“We’re out listening to Maine people. The Maine Climate Council will start deliberating at the end of September,” she said. “All of the feedback we’ve heard from Maine’s people is going to be what we bring to the Maine Climate Council.”
First, the attendees used sticky notes to describe what successful climate action meant for them.
Then, the attendees were asked to take a walk around the library’s Hallett Hall, where the council’s proposed strategies were lined up on boards. After that, they were split into groups with themes to critique the strategies, point out what was most relevant and what was missing.
The strategies were intended to help ease the impact of a variety of climate-related issues. The major themes across the strategies were diverse, from waste and land management, reducing fossil-fueled vehicle traffic to conservation efforts to protect marine habitat and increasing infrastructure for housing and more public transportation.
“I’d say the main reason I’m here tonight is just the severity of the recent storms over the past year. That made me want to be a little more involved,” Paul Josephson said. “Obviously, things have been getting warmer for a long time now.”
The attendees at the first of Maine Climate Council’s action plan workshops, held Tuesday at Lewiston Public Library, were asked to describe successful climate action in Maine. Frida Zeinali/Sun Journal
Once the discussions were over, each group got to report its notes.
“Really doing anything to just take the focus off of cars and put it on pedestrians will go a long way in making public transportation more efficient because less people will simply be taking cars,” said Jon Diotalevi, speaking for his group which had focused on transportation. “We (had) different ideas about how to not encourage cars, like heavier taxes on larger trucks and cars, wider road shoulders for bikers, and more sidewalk shoveling through cities. A lot of it is ‘build it and they’ll come.’”
Another group shared thoughts about energy. “(We didn’t see an item for) providing access to energy efficient programs for renters and ensuring that renters see their benefits as well,” Brian Allen said. “Another item we noted is that the home weatherization effort seems to be lagging. There’s really been no discussion of why that is, but it does seem like a pretty small number of many homes that have been weatherized, maybe 17,000.”
“And the last item wasn’t mentioned, but seems to be worthy of mention, is this idea of signing up for solar shares, which can save you 15% on your electricity bill,” Allen added. “That’s kind of a free, no-cost program that every household should be signed up for.”
The council has four more workshops scheduled this month in Portland, Bangor, Biddeford and Ellsworth. The workshops are open to the public. More information about registration is available at the council’s meeting calendar at maine.gov/future.
While influenza remains the top concern for Maine public health experts, other viruses are also currently circulating, including norovirus and COVID-19.
“Influenza is clearly the main event,” said Dr. Cheryl Liechty, a MaineHealth infectious disease specialist. “The curve in terms of the rise of influenza cases was really steep.”
Maine reported 1,343 flu cases for the week ending Jan. 3, an uptick from the 1,283 cases recorded the previous week, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Hospitalizations increased to 147 from 108 during the same time periods.
“I hope the peak is now,” Liechty said, “but I’m not really sure.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Friday that all of New England, except for Vermont, is currently experiencing “very high” levels of influenza. Vermont is in the “moderate” category.
“What we are seeing, overwhelmingly, is the flu,” said Andrew Donovan, associate vice president of infection prevention for Northern Light Health. “We are seeing both respiratory and gastrointestinal viruses in our patients.”
Norovirus also appears to be circulating, although due to its short duration and because it’s less severe than the flu, public health data on the illness — which causes gastrointestinal symptoms that typically resolve within a few days — is not as robust.
“Norovirus is the gastrointestinal scourge of New England winters and cruise ships,” Liechty said.
According to surveillance data at wastewater treatment plants in Portland, Bangor and Lewiston, norovirus levels detected in those communities are currently “high.” The treatment plants participate in WastewaterSCAN, which reports virus levels in wastewater through a program run by Stanford University and Emory University.
Dr. Genevieve Whiting, a Westbrook pediatrician and secretary of the Maine chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said viruses are prevalent right now, especially the flu and norovirus.
“For my patients right now, it’s a rare encounter that I hear everyone in a family has been healthy,” Whiting said. “I’ve had families come in and say their entire family has had norovirus. Several of my patients have had ER visits for suspected norovirus, where they needed IV fluids because they were dehydrated.”
Both Liechty and Whiting said they are seeing less respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, likely because there has been good uptake of the new RSV vaccine, which is recommended for older people and those who are pregnant. The vaccine was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2023.
“The RSV vaccine has been a real success, as RSV was a leading cause of hospitalizations for babies,” Whiting said.
Meanwhile, COVID-19 cases increased to 610 in the final week of 2025, compared to 279 the previous week. Influenza and COVID-19 vaccinations are available at primary care, pharmacies and clinics across the state.
“If you haven’t gotten your flu shot yet,” Liechty said, “you should beat a hasty path to get your shot.”
Defensemen Max Wanner was re-assigned to the Maine Mariners from the Providence Bruins on Thursday. Defenseman Michael Underwood was also re-assigned to Maine.
Wanner, 22, was acquired by the Boston Bruins when they traded Trent Federic to Edmonton last March. He played in 15 games for the AHL Providence Bruins at the end of last season, and seven this season.
Underwood returns for his second stint with the Mariners. He appeared in 67 games with Maine last season.
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