PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • August 4, 2022
Higgins Beach in Scarborough has been identified among the top 10 U.S. surfing spots under threat from climate change by a national organization dedicated to the protection of world oceans, waves and beaches. The Surfrider Foundation said rising sea levels associated with warming ocean waters, including those in the rapidly heating Gulf of Maine, are reducing both beach access and wave production around the world, including at the popular Higgins Beach site. The Maine Climate Council has determined that sea level rise along the Gulf of Maine, which is warming faster than 99 percent of the world’s oceans, could affect 20,000 jobs, cause $17.5 billion in coastal infrastructure damage, and increase flooding events ten-fold by 2050.