Maine has been getting more rain and snow each year, in part because of more intense storms brought on by climate change, yet the state is still experiencing droughts, according to weather forecasters and climatologists.
According to the National Weather Service, Maine has abnormally dry or moderate drought conditions in coastal, eastern and far northern parts of the state — so far not as bad as the drought that affected Maine last summer and fall. But precipitation from the “worst” storms in the Northeast has increased by 27 percent since 1901, according to a report by federal scientists published Monday by the New York Times.
On the surface, those facts seem to conflict with one another: How can Maine be getting more precipitation and yet also have crops that suffer from a lack of water?
The answer lies in how and where the rain falls in Maine, according to Sean Birkel, a research professor at University of Maine and the state’s official climatologist.
