The Community Resilience Partnership municipalities of Arrowsic, Georgetown, Phippsburg, Westport Island and Woolwich are hosting experts for a presentation on climate change impacts on water supply and quality.

The online presentation will take place on Thursday, July 7 at 5:30 p.m. and will detail the characteristics of the region’s groundwater supply and what climate-related changes mean for groundwater.

According to a press release, climate change is bringing increasing droughts and severe rainfall events as well as sea-level rise. As a result,  coastal communities are finding wells running low or dry or are becoming contaminated from saltwater intrusion. The webinar will discuss how these changes might impact local communities and how other communities are assessing these threats to their water supply.

Maine Geological Survey hydrogeologist Ryan Gordon will discuss the impact of climate change on coastal Maine aquifers followed by a presentation from a New Hampshire project group on water supply assessment case studies.

The New Hampshire project group includes Strafford Regional Planning Commission Principal Regional Planner Kyle Pimental; University of New Hampshire Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor Jennifer Jacobs; and JFK Environmental Services LLC Principal Jayne Knott.

The Community Resilience Partnership, administered by the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future, assists communities in climate mitigation and adaptation activities through grants and technical assistance.

Arrowsic, Georgetown, Phippsburg, Westport Island and Woolwich are completing the enrollment process with assistance from the New England Environmental Finance Center, Casco Bay Estuary Partnership and Kennebec Estuary Land Trust.

As part of the enrollment process, town representatives identified an interest in learning more about the impacts of climate change on water supply and quality in order to better identify and prioritize relevant climate resilience actions. Enrollment in the partnership allows communities to pursue Community Action Grants to address locally prioritized actions.

New England Environmental Finance Center partners with state and local governments, tribes and the private sector to provide technical assistance and capacity building for innovative solutions to fund and finance environmental priorities and climate resilience.

Casco Bay Estuary Partnership works in collaboration with state and federal agencies, local government and dozens of local organizations to conserve the ecological integrity of the Casco Bay Watershed through science, stewardship and collaboration.

The Kennebec Estuary Land Trust is a membership-supported organization dedicated to protecting the land, water and wildlife of the Kennebec Estuary. It maintains 12 preserves for public enjoyment and has protected 4,100+ acres of land since its founding in 1989.

For more information and to register for the event, visit  neefc.org/news-and-events/ or email courtney.crossgrove@maine.edu.

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