Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, is questioned by reporters as she arrives at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2017. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

A new General Accounting Office report on climate that warns extreme weather is on the rise ought to spur federal policy shifts, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins said Tuesday.

“We cannot ignore the impact of climate change on our public health, our environment and our economy,” the Maine Republican said on the Senate floor.

She said the government cannot afford the billions in extra spending that climate change will require and urged colleagues to “start acting on the serious consequences” already underway for the country — and Maine in particular.

The report, issued Tuesday at the request of Collins and U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., examined the economic impact of climate change. It estimates that if hurricanes and wildfires continue at the rate seen this year, they’ll cost the nation $6 trillion during the next two decades.

Collins called the figures in the report astonishing for both the economy and the federal budget.

“Our government cannot afford to spend more than $300 billion each year in response to severe weather events that are connected to warming waters, which produce stronger hurricanes,” she said.

In Maine, she said, “Our economy is inextricably linked to the environment.”

“We are experiencing a real change in sea life, which has serious implications for the livelihoods of many people who work in our state, including those who work in our iconic lobster industry,” Collins said.

She said climate change is forcing lobsters into deeper, cooler water, which adds to the risks and hardships facing those who catch them, and making it easier for non-native crabs to spread in Casco Bay.

Collins also said that Maine’s “excessively high rate of asthma” is caused in part by coal-burning plants in other states whose emissions wind up in Maine’s air.

She said she hopes the report “will cause all of us to think more broadly about this issue, take a harder look at the economic consequences of inaction and use what is known about climate risks to inform federal policy.”

Cantwell said that “unless we mitigate the impacts,” taxpayers will get socked with trillions in extra costs caused by a warming climate.

Collins said she and Cantwell asked the GAO two years ago for a report looking into the economic consequences of climate change and what policies might help limit the damage.

A 2016 assessment by the federal Office of Management and Budget and the Council of Economic Advisers found that climate change would increase the annual tab to the government by as much as $35 billion annually in 2050 and as much as $112 billion yearly by the end of the century.

The GAO report found that “climate change impacts are already costing the federal government money, and these costs will likely increase over time as the climate continues to change.”

To adapt to a warmer climate, the report said, the nation may need to raise dikes, build higher bridges and increase the capacity of storm water systems.

scollins@sunjournal.com