Door County Will Host Climate Change Conference This Weekend

This weekend, a coalition of environmental groups is hosting the first Door County Climate Change Conference, which will focus on climate change in Wisconsin and how carbon emissions are affecting the popular tourist spot in particular.

125 people are expected to attend the event.

“We’re trying to re-start the conversation in a civil way,” said Roy Thilly, an organizer of the conference. “First, to educate about what is happening, what is likely to happen, why – and then the obvious question, ‘What can we do?’”

Thilly, who also co-chaired former Gov. Jim Doyle’s Global Warming Task Force from 2007 to 2008, said carbon emissions have risen recently, due in part to the closure of the Kewaunee Nuclear Power Plant. The plant, he said, provided a lot of electricity to the state. That power now comes from fossil fuels.

This week, President Barack Obama proposed cutting the nation’s coal emissions by 30 percent by the year 2030. Thilly said it’s something the state should pay attention to.

Speakers at the forum include the superintendent of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, who will address climate concerns on lakes Superior and Michigan.