BANGOR DAILY NEWS • August 11, 2020
As countries and individuals blame each other for the spread of COVID-19, we overlook how climate change and deforestation have created the perfect environment for diseases like COVID-19 and others to flourish. As global temperatures warm they push vectors such as mosquitos and ticks and the diseases they carry into new habitats. In areas like Maine, winters may become more mild, lengthening the seasonal patterns of disease transmission. In combating climate change and subsequently infectious disease, forests hold the secret. Forests act as a major carbon sink. But between 1990 and 2016, the world has lost total forest coverage the size of South Africa due to climate change and deforestation. As Gov. Janet Mill’s Climate Council moves forward, it is important to consider how they are preserving Maine’s coastal economy, its forests and our future well-being. ~ Amanda Bertana, Maine Chapter of the Scholars Strategy Network, and Jessica Eckhardt, Northland College