For anyone reading Maine newspapers, it’s getting more difficult to deny climate change, its impacts and the related energy dilemma it presents.

In March, articles on these climate-related issues appeared in the Press Herald and other Maine papers: the impact of significant temperature swings on Maine’s roads; the impact of energy usage on climate; soaring temperatures in the Arctic and Antarctic; the bleaching of the Great Barrier Reef; meat consumption’s role in the destruction of the Amazon, and pipeline emissions.

I could go on. But it all sounds too familiar, doesn’t it?

The latest Yale climate study confirms that Americans are no longer in denial about the threat we face – and that they are worried. The program, which has been measuring public climate change knowledge, attitudes, policy preferences and behavior for well over a decade, shows that on average 72 percent of Americans recognize the threats posed by climate change and 65 percent are worried. This is significant. But being worried doesn’t solve anything.

If you are among the 65 percent, put your worry to work. Congress will soon be revisiting climate legislation that was stalled at the close of 2021. Write or call your members of Congress now to tell them you want action on climate change. Our voices, in numbers, do make a difference.

Bonnie Sammons
Belgrade