The Branons, who savor their life as well as the syrup, find it difficult to event think about a future without their trees.... oops ... wait a minute, that was in 2007.
"We'll probably both live through it," said Cecile. "But I hope our kids can. You know, we've got four sons and we want to be able to see them take over their business."
But Tim Perkins, who lives every day with the disturbing scientific reality, doesn't think the trend can be reversed.
"It would be very difficult, I think, at this point," he said.
"The loss would be really a very large blow to the psyche of the state," he added sadly. "It would affect a large number of sugar makers, obviously, but it would also impact the way that people see themselves as Vermonters. It's an emblem of the state."
Now in 2009, things seem to have changed:
With Vermont leading the way, US maple syrup production in 2009 totaled 2.33 million gallons, up 22 percent from 2008 and the highest on record since 1944. The number of taps is estimated at 8.65 million, 4 percent above the 2008 total of 8.33 million. Yield per tap is estimated to be 0.269 gallons, up 17 percent from the previous season. Vermont led all states in production with 920,000 gallons an increase of 30 percent from 2008 and the highest on record since 1944. Vermont produced more than a third of the national total.I wonder if Maple Syrup was included in the most terrifying report to come out of the Obama White House ... don't read this unless you are stout of heart:
Harmful effects from global warming are already here and worsening, warns the first climate report from Barack Obama's presidency in the strongest language on climate change ever to come out of the White House.
Global warming has already caused more heavy downpours, the rise of temperatures and sea levels, rapidly retreating glaciers and altered river flows, according to the document released Tuesday by the White House science adviser and other top officials.
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