2019 bills HCCA supported

Posted on April 30, 2019 by

In 2019, Harford County Climate Action supported 9 bills in the Maryland State Legislature.  View PDF: 2019 Bills Supported by HCCA

The first three listed here passed.

  1. HB 1453/Senate Bill 732, the Maryland Clean Energy Jobs Act (Renewable Energy and Job Development), which increases renewable energy production to 50% by 2030, and requires a plan for getting to 100% by 2050.
  2. HB 0109/Senate Bill 0285, “Environment-Expanded Polystyrene Food Service Products Prohibition. This bill prohibits disposable food containers made of expanded polystyrene foam (Styrofoam).
  3. SB 0573/ HB 0650, Energy Storage Pilot Project Act, which requires the PSC to establish a pilot program to use battery power for electricity backup in lieu of gas “peakers” – power plants that generally run only when there is a high demand, known as peak demand, for electricity.

No-Styrofoam-stickers-for-outside-1100x890   cg-youthclimate-2 batterysolar

This is how your Harford County Representatives voted:

Senator Bob Cassilly Sen. Gallion Sen. Jennings Delegate Arikan Del Andrew Cassilly Del Imprallaria Del Johnson Del Lisanti Del McComas Del Szeliga
  Energy Storage Yes Yes Yes No Yes Absent Yes Yes Yes Yes
Polystyrene No No No No Yes No Yes Yes No No
Clean Energy Jobs Act No No No No No No Yes Yes No No

The next 6 bills made it only 25-50% of the way through the process, and were held up or voted “No” in committees. 

  1. HB 669/Senate Bill 387, the Maryland Pipeline and Water Protection Act,which would have closed a loophole in environmental review of new pipelines proposed in the state.
  2. HB 0117/SB 0003: Smart Growth Investment Fund, which would have disincentivized sprawl development. (R. Cassilly, Jennings, Gallion voted “NO.”)
  3. HB 0120/SB 0203: Natural Resources – No Net Loss of Forest, which would have protected state coverage of forest land. (R. Cassilly, Jennings, Gallion voted “NO”)
  4. HB 0472, the Green Amendment, which would have added Marylanders’ right to breathable air, uncontaminated water and a clean environment to the state constitution, along with current rights, such as free speech and freedom of religion.
  5. HB 0275/SB 0270, Pesticides – Use of Chlorpyrifos – Prohibition, which would have banned chlorpyrifos. Chlorpyrifos is a toxic nerve agent pesticide proven to cause brain damage in children, contaminate waterways, and harm wildlife. After years of study, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency concluded that chlorpyrifos is unsafe at any detectable level.
  6. SB 0788/ HB 0695 The Transportation Accountability Act, which would have required a comprehensive study of the anticipated greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution of any highway project, both state-funded or built through a public-private partnership.
Posted in Uncategorized

A Message from the Future

Posted on April 17, 2019 by

In “A Message form the Future with Alexandria Ocaso-Cortez,” environmental journalist Naomi Klein writes,

We realized that the biggest obstacle to the kind of transformative change the Green New Deal envisions is overcoming the skepticism that humanity could ever pull off something at this scale and speed.

What if we actually pulled off a Green New Deal? What would the future look like? The Intercept presents a film narrated by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and illustrated by Molly Crabapple.

Posted in Environmental Justice

Havre de Grace community calls for resolution opposing offshore drilling

Posted on March 20, 2019 by

At the March 18 2018 meeting of the Havre de Grace City Council, the community called for resolution opposing offshore drilling and oil exploration including seismic airgun blasting.

Speakers: Bruce Russel, President, Havre de Grace Maritime Museum

Nick Galero, resident, Havre de Grace

Alison Kinney, student, Port Deposit

Carol Zimmerman, Havre de Grace Green Team

Caroline Wood, Oceana

Video recording of council meeting provided by Harford Cable Network

 

Posted in HCCA Campaigns, Public Meetings

Harford and Cecil Youth Strike for Climate in Annapolis #FridaysForFuture

Posted on March 15, 2019 by

Calling attention to the urgency of the climate crisis, students converged in Annapolis on Friday, March 15.   They demanded that people and governments work together to end dependence on fossil fuels and promote clean renewable energy.   The young activists cited legislation such as the Clean Energy Jobs Act and the visionary Green New Deal which address not only sources of energy but also issues of health, environmental, social, economic and racial justice that are implicated in the process of extracting and burning fossil fuels.

Continue reading →

Posted in Public Meetings

Lucian Calypsonians call for Climate Action

Posted on March 15, 2019 by

Thanks to Harford County Climate Action member Jack Dettner for sharing this delightful video from the Carribean island nation of St. Lucia, creatively using music to popularize the urgency of climate action.  Covering topics ranging from waste disposal to building code regulations, the catchy tune is performed by  A-Listers from Saint Lucia’s calypso community  including King Pep, Educator, Herbblack, Mr. Brown, Menell, Chocolate, and Ready.  They have created a compelling rallying call to Saint Lucians which is relevant across the globe.

Posted in Uncategorized

Why Havre de Grace Should Oppose Oil Drilling and Seismic Blasting off Maryland’s Coast

Posted on March 5, 2019 by

Havre de Grace, one of Harford County’s historic and beautiful towns with a thriving coastal community has a vital opportunity to defend Maryland’s shores and marine life from the threats posed by offshore oil drilling and exploration. Harford County Climate Action is working with the community to ask the Mayor and City Council of Havre de Grace to pass a resolution opposing oil drilling and seismic airgun blasting off Maryland’s shores.

Please call  Mayor Martin at (410) 939-1800 as well as Havre de Grace City Council members and ask them to pass a resolution opposing oil drilling off Maryland’s coast.

Here are some reasons this is important:

  1. Oil drilling would be preceded by seismic blasting.  The only direct effect of seismic blasting on Havre de Grace would be if it destroyed a generation of blue crab larvae, and consequently, affected local crabbers and restaurants.  This doesn’t mean that Havre de Grace can’t take a moral stance against seismic blasting.

According to Oceana, “Seismic airguns are used to find oil and gas deep underneath the ocean floor. Airguns are so loud that they disturb, injure or kill marine life, harm commercial fisheries, and disrupt coastal economies. These blasts are repeated every ten seconds, 24 hours a day, for days and weeks at a time. Seismic airgun testing currently being proposed in the Atlantic could injure 138,000 whales and dolphins and disturb millions more, according to government estimates. Continue reading →

Posted in HCCA Campaigns

2018 Review

Posted on November 12, 2018 by

In 2018 Harford County Climate Action worked steadily at the personal, community and policy level to encourage meaningful actions to reduce our impact on the environment, espsecially our carbon footprint!

WATCH this marvelous retrospective of the year that was:

Annual Review 2018 (as read at the Annual Meeting, November 2018) Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized