FloodVision: Edge of America Tour

Welcome to the Edge of America Tour!

June 3, 2024, 5 AM.  Our intrepid field producer, Max Grater, preps FloodRover II for the first leg of a long journey in the parking lot of the Blue Hill Inn (where there was an EV charger!).

First stop: The Blue Hill Wastewater Treatment Plant, at high tide. Just down the street from the inn, Max met up with some members of  Peninsula Tomorrow , a nine-town coalition that promotes resilience and adaptation to sea level rise and other climate change impacts. Allen Kratz coordinates the group of dedicated locals who have been working on solutions to the advancing seas. Max interviewed the group about what concerns them, what impacts they've experienced.

Allen Kratz: Sea level rise, storm surge, astronomically high tides, flooding of our waterfront properties and damage, loss of income to people whose livelihoods depend on the water. Blue Hill is one town, but a lot of surrounding towns depend on this town, for its hospital, supermarket, pharmacies. I’ve seen an increasing awareness among people that the climate is changing and we need to work collaboratively to get the funding to adapt to storms and flooding. This winter’s storms were a real wake up call for people, they saw flooding they’ve never seen before.

Sarah King: I was driving my children into school this morning. We were at high tide and every time I drive by Peters Cove just just down the road, I think the tide can't possibly get any higher and it has. I have noticed big changes. As a child, my mother used to take us out after storm events and we would go see what had happened. Now there’s a lot more damage, a lot more storms in the winter months, and more rainstorm intensity. It’s just so much.

Bailey Bowden is the  Bagaduce River Monitor , and just might have the greatest email address ever (clamchair@xxx.com). He’s an eighth generation descendent from original settlers to the area, going back to 1751 or thereabouts. 

Bailey Bowden: There have been detrimental changes, that we’ve seen over time. With 3 feet of sea level rise, the low water mark is not going to be where it is today. And 3 feet of sea level rise will eliminate about 800 acres of land, so there will be no shellfish harvesting, and the industry could be severely impacted by the efficacy of sea level rise.”

Jeff Milliken: Severe climate change could overwhelm all the culverts on town roads. Blue Hill’s wastewater treatment plant is only 12 inches above the high tide mark, and we need to change that. We’re looking into natural shorelines, rather than artificial or hard structures, like sea walls, which don’t allow for sediment transfer. We need that for regeneration.

After hearing about the resilience efforts on the Blue Hill peninsula, it was time to turn on the equipment... and everything worked without a hitch! Well,  there was a slight bit of difficulty starting the 'Ride w/ GPS' route for the day because the internet service in Blue Hill is nearly non-existent (some of us might say that’s one of the greatest charms of this part of Maine). 

Max and the FloodRover II traveled nearly 78 miles in a little under five hours (including a lunch stop by the big boats in Belfast... today it was cajun halibut for Captain Max).

Final thoughts from Max on his first day: "As the day got later, Route 1 got considerably busy and became 50 MPH. I had to pull off for a gazillion cars that needed to go faster than me. This is on the calm streets of Maine. They'll run me down in Boston if I slow a pack of commuters down, lol."

We will update these StoryMap Edge of America Tour posts with visualizations as they become available.