No business, large or small, can expect to be immune from the impacts of climate change. Just last year, extreme weather caused an estimated $313 billion in global economic losses, a majority of which were not covered by insurance. And readers of the Kennebunk Post will remember the 2018 nor’easter that damaged dozens of homes and business in York County.

With that reality in mind, Kennebunk and Kennebunkport’s Climate Action Task Forces are inviting businesses to a listening session to learn more about which climate threats they are most concerned about. The information will be used to inform both municipalities’ Climate Action Plans, roadmaps for reducing a town or city’s carbon foot print and making it more adaptive in the face of climate change.

The business breakfast will be held on Nov. 16 from 8 to 9 a.m. at the Nonantum Resort in Kennebunkport and will give both task forces a chance to hear directly from the business community. Details of the plan will be presented on during the meeting. Businesses can also submit responses to a survey about their climate concerns prior to the meeting at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ClimateBizKennebunks.

Both Kennebunk and Kennebunkport formed Climate Action Plan Task Forces last year to lead the process of creating a Climate Action Plan that can guide future town climate policy.

The listening session is part of an effort to actively involve the community in creating the plan. Alison Malmqvist, a member of Kennebunk’s Climate Action Task Force emphasized that, “the more people who are a part of the process and are thinking through these big challenges, [that] will make the plan … that much richer and more meaningful for us a town,” during a September select board meeting.

Both Kennebunk and Kennebunkport are a part of the Southern Maine CAP Cohort, a program put together by the Southern Maine Planning and Development Commission to help the towns develop a Climate Action Plan.

The Southern Maine Planning and Development Commission has provided guidance and research for both towns throughout the process. For example, a 2022 SMPDC report found that roughly a quarter of all property value in Kennebunkport could be impacted by coastal storm hazards — such as flooding — as sea level rises to predicted heights by 2050. Kennebunk could see a roughly 12 percent of all property value impacted as sea level rises. Economic and tourist destinations in Kennebunk are particularly vulnerable to sea level rise and storm surge, including Lower Village and Gooch’s Beach, according to the report.

Any information collected at the Nov. 16 session would be supplemental research that the task forces can use in drafting their plans.

For more information on the business breakfast, email Carol Morris at cmorris@morriscomm.net.

 

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