PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • February 12, 2026
According to the United Nations, the supply of water available for human use has been so depleted and polluted that we have crossed a threshold into “water bankruptcy.” Maine is a comparatively “wet” place. But that does not confer immunity to the climatic and other stresses underlying global water bankruptcy. Worsening water deficits, from a “megadrought” in the U.S. Southwest to Africa’s Sahel, will reinforce the climate advantages that are already attracting in-migrants to the Pine Tree State. An influx of “water refugees” could enhance the vitality of Maine’s economy and host communities. Agriculture and outdoor recreation, legacy sectors crucial for Maine’s rural vitality, and Maine’s four-season lake and mountain tourist destinations should also benefit. It is paradoxical that Maine might benefit from others’ suffering in the coming decades. This dilemma underscores our moral obligation to steward Maine’s water resources sustainably and equitably. ~ David Vail, professor of economics emeritus at Bowdoin College and a member of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby’s Economics Research Network