Commentary | Mike Tidwell
It’s high noon in Annapolis. Lawmakers must pick between two starkly different economic visions.
Students Lobby Annapolis
So this post is a little overdue, I organized a couple of lobby meetings with Delegate Michael Vaughn, and after many attempts to reach him, State Senator Nathaniel Exum. The meeting with Delegate Vaughn went well, we talked with him about the Greenhouse Gas Reductions Act which he hadn’t seen yet, gave him a copy, and told him what was different about the bill this year, and how we thought he could help sheppard it through the Economic Matters Committee. In the end, he ended up becoming a co-sponsor.
The meeting with State Senator Exum was not successful, although we did talk with him for about 45 minutes about the bill, and the issues surrounding it. Exum’s main issue was that Maryland Dept. of Env. had taken longer than it should have to get him a permit for his business, and he felt that they were too incompetent to administer a greenhouse gas reductions plan. The one thing we did learn that was useful was that he planned to introduce an amendment similar to the one he introduced last year, where MDE has to report its plan and proposed programs back to the legislature every year. He said he might “compromise” on 2 years. Obviously this wasn’t acceptable to us, and we do not see eye to eye with Exum. Despite our differences, he was very respectful, and we’re thankful he was kind enough to sit down with us for so long considering we weren’t his constituents and his relationship with the environmental community hasn’t been all flowers and sunshine.
Pictures below
Another Happy Update on MD Carbon Legislation
It’s time for another MD state update from your friendly Annapolis correspondant. Woo! And I know what you’re thinking: another upbeat and perky blog from Holly. Mostly, you’re right. (as a sidenote, that’s the only thing that makes me jealous of the VA team – they get way more opportunities to post snarky blog posts)
Yesterday, there were two fun and exciting developments on the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act.
First, Mike and I went to lunch at the Governor’s Mansion. It was very fancy inside.
More importantly for this part of the day was the press conference of support for the bill, featuring Gov O’Malley himself, along with our amazing bill sponsors, Senator Paul Pinsky and Delegate Kumar Barve and Jim Strong of United Steel Workers. Here’s our press release.
I was fully expecting some singing of folks songs in a circle, but I guess that that would be a little bit too much for me to ask of all the serious folks who were there.
MD Environmentalists Are Awesome Once Again
Ok, so this is a little bit overdue (though, honestly, MD enviros are awesome all the time, so this may not even be news). But on Monday, they showed up in full force in Annapolis once again to make sure that all of MD’s legislators know that we’re watching them as they consider a bevy of environmental bills.
This year, priority legislation includes the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act (of course), a package for Smart and Fair Growth, Defunding the ICC, and greening the budget. For details on all the priorities, MD League of Conservation Voters is a great resource.
Also in the works are a BUNCH of bills that will help MD reach the reduction targets of the GGRA in a swift and effective manner. So stay tuned also for updates on:
1. Energy Efficient Buildings
Moment of Change: Maryland's Environment
In the third of the BBC series, ‘Moment of Change’ Katty Kay investigates the hurdles that the Obama administration will have in implementing a successful environmental policy by focusing on global warming and the Chesapeake Bay.
“Take a boat into the Chesapeake Bay and the effects of global warming on Maryland’s 3,000 miles of coastline are everywhere. THis house used once stood back from the Bay, now the water is lapping at its foundation. This island was once connected to this island, which was connected to this island, which was connected to the mainland.”
MD Gov. O'Malley is a Clean Energy Hero!
Gov. Martin O’Malley announced his support today for a global warming bill CCAN and the Alliance for Global Warming Solutions have been pushing for the last two years. Sponsored by Sen. Paul Pinsky, Del. Kumar Barve, and O’Malley as lead, the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act will protect Maryland’s environment and economy while also spurring action at the federal level to address global warming nationwide.
Join us in thanking him for his leadership>>
This makes Maryland the sixth state in the nation in calling for statewide reductions in global warming pollution. The bill requires reductions in statewide greenhouse gas emissions of 25% from 2006 levels by 2020, and directs the Maryland Department of the Environment to craft a plan and a timeline to achieve those goals.
“This law will put Maryland at the forefront of controlling greenhouse gas emissions and should push the federal government to follow our lead and get serious about this issue,” said Del. Barve. The bill follows the recommendations of the Maryland Commission on Climate Change, established by Governor O’Malley in 2007, and closely resembles the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2008. The commission offered 42 specific policy proposals to achieve the 2020 reductions, and the authors emphasized the importance of those early and aggressive actions if we hope to mitigate future global warming. Continue reading
MD + Public Transit = Love Forever
Sometimes I feel like my organizing all centers around an abstract plane of numbers. I can’t touch a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions 90% by 2050. Of course, I still know in my gut that setting the mandate for reductions is the crucial first step to fighting climate change, and watching the news with any kind of awareness brings me back to reductions targets time and again (see Wilkins Ice Shelf for a recent and scary example) (oh, and this just in, about the Arctic melting past the point of no return). But sometimes I want to focus on something a little more concrete, like shutting down coal plants – or supporting the creation of more public transportation.
In my part of Maryland right now, it’s the Purple Line.
Rockfish to host plunge after party!
MD’s Rockfish, the only EPA Certified Green Restaurant in Annapolis,will host a Plunge after-party on January 10. They are offering plungers and their guests
Maryland's Manufacturing Moguls and Me
As many of you know, Maryland’s 2008 Global Warming Solutions Act died a slow and painful death mainly because of opposition from the industrial community – the usual suspects in the lineup of enviros vs “them”. That’s how I saw these folks – the other who obviously didn’t care about my future, and wanted to make as much money as possible while destroying any chance we’d have of combating climate change.
However, because the clashes of 2008 Session of the General Assembly were so acrimonious, a series of stakeholder meetings and discussions were set up by Maryland’s Department of the Environment to try and work out a compromise. Even though MD’s climate action plan calls for no explicit changes to be made in the industrial sector with a net benefit to the state’s coffers (check out pg 36 for a cool graph), I wasn’t too hopeful that the industry folks would be willing to compromise on anything that cut into profit margins, especially with the spiraling news of economic downturn.
As a matter of fact, these meetings have been eye-opening for me. We’re breaking down the us-vs-them mentality on both sides of the table. Yesterday afternoon, an industry representative turned to me and said “Maryland being a leader on global warming isn’t just about having the most aggressive reduction targets – we can lead by breaking the impasse between environmentalists and manufacturers that’s been around for decades.”
From the first meeting, everyone in the room agreed on three goals: 1) Significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, 2)Protect existing jobs, and 3) Grow Maryland’s economy.
So I don’t want to jinx everything by preemptively trumpeting our victory, but I do want to share that there is some compromise on policy that would accomplish the above goals. Stay tuned – I’ll let everyone know what the details of the 2009 bill are as soon as they’re finalized! But what I’m really excited about, as cheesy as it sounds, are the relationships that we’re building. Who knows?
Virginians hope for clean energy at Obama rally
Virginians Unite!
And unite we did. At the Obama rally held at Ida Lee Park in Leesburg, Virginians sent a unified message about energy. When Obama mentioned investments to create 5 million green jobs and investing in renewables like wind and solar, the crowd in front of him responded with cheers and a public display of hundreds of green scarves to show their support. It was an amazing site to behold to see a message that was so loud and so clear that it didn’t even need words. Here in Northern Virginia, we know what real clean energy is and expect the next President of the United States of American to have a plan to put us on the path to Clean Energy Future.
No one wants to gamble our future on the fairytale of “clean coal.” When our economy is in such a fragile state, the time for telling bedtime stories to ease our fears is over. We need real solutions and when we hear them you better believe we get excited. That’s what happened yesterday in Leesburg and what will continue to happen as this 21st Century energy economy becomes a reality.