Bloomberg Businessweek
By Jim Snyder and Justin Doom
A stripped-down wind-energy proposal backed by Maryland’s governor and gaining support in its legislature may be the first step in creating a network of offshore turbines and sub-sea cables spanning the U.S. Atlantic coast.
The project would power the equivalent of 61,600 of Maryland’s 2.1 million households. However, clean-energy advocates say it could signal the emergence of an industry that has so far been unable to erect a single tower in U.S. waters, giving the project impact beyond its megawatts.
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Bill Introduced To Put A Moratorium On Fracking
Reporting Alex DeMetrick
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ)—Even though it promises money and jobs, efforts are underway to keep fracking from Maryland. At least until the risks are evaluated.
Alex DeMetrick reports the controversial drilling technique has freed up huge reserves of natural gas as well as worry.
The wells travel the spine of a vast deposit of shale rich in natural gas. High pressure streams of water and chemicals fractures the shale and releases the gas.
It’s called fracking, and now legislation has been introduced that would put a moratorium on fracking in Maryland.
Paper mills reap millions from state energy law
By Timothy B. Wheeler
A Western Maryland paper mill and several others in the region have collected millions of dollars over the past eight years by taking advantage of an obscure provision in a state law that is supposed to encourage the development of wind, solar and other renewable energy projects.
The paper manufacturers routinely burn waste byproducts from their mills to make the energy to run them. But since 2005, they’ve been getting paid to do so by selling “renewable energy credits” to power companies, which can buy the paper waste credits rather than purchase ones generated by the sun or wind.
Forecast calls for pain
The Baltimore Sun
By Mike Tidwell
Not long after President Barack Obama promised to fight climate change in his inaugural address, temperatures soared to 70 last week in Baltimore — in late January. Our weather continues to be unrecognizable. Last summer was the hottest ever recorded at Baltimore/Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport. And across the 48 contiguous states, 2012 was the warmest on record by a huge margin. Globally, the heating trend — fueled mostly by the combustion of fossil fuels — proceeds apace. The years 2000-2009 were the warmest decade in 120,000 years.
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Baltimore City Council backs statewide fracking moratorium in unanimous vote
Yesterday evening, the Baltimore City Council unanimously endorsed our legislation before the state General Assembly that would place a moratorium on fracking in Maryland, adding its voice to the mounting calls for tougher scrutiny of the risks of the controversial gas drilling method.
The resolution, introduced by Councilman Bill Henry and co-sponsored by 10 council members, including Council President Bernard Young, supports passage of the “Maryland Hydraulic Fracturing Moratorium and Right to Know Act of 2013,” which is being introduced in Annapolis by State Senator Rob Zirkin and State Delegate Heather Mizeur.
“The City Council is taking up this issue because it’s clear that fracking can seriously impact not only the physical environment, but the health of entire communities,” said Councilman Bill Henry. “We want to make sure that when the General Assembly makes their ultimate decision about fracking’s future in Maryland, it won’t be because they’ve been rushed, but because they have been fully informed about all of the potential risks.”
My First Plunge
An account of the Polar Bear Plunge written by first time plunger and current CCAN intern Rachel O’Keeffe
On January 26th, I became a part of a now 8-year-long tradition: the Polar Bear Plunge! As the crowd around me counted down from 10, the excitement spread like an electric current. My adrenaline was pumping as I ran into the icy Potomac. I kept jumping in the water, for fear that if I stopped, the icy water would further penetrate my skin.
Hybrid car owners protest at the Virginia Capitol
By Kathy Adams
With signs, cardboard wind turbines and a parade of Priuses, hybrid car owners on Thursday afternoon sent a message to legislators meeting inside the Capitol: No hybrid tax.
The demonstration by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network was in protest of legislation that would tax hybrid car owners and repeal renewable-energy incentives for electricity companies.
Protests Against Va. Hybrid Car Fee Proposal
By Julie Carey
Environmentally-conscious drivers and their supporters took to the streets to protest part of Gov. Bob McDonnell’s transportation funding plan. News4 Northern Virginia Bureau Chief Julie Carey has more on the hybrid vehicle fee proposal.
Hybrid car owners protest Governor's transportation plan
By Joe Dashiell
Owners of hybrid cars drove around Capitol Square honking their horns Thursday afternoon. Other supporters carried signs and chanted, “No hybrid tax.” They were protesting proposed legislation, including an element of the Governor’s transportation plan that would impose a $100 fee on hybrid and electric cars.
Prius parade protests Gov. McDonnell’s proposed hybrid tax
By Errin Haines
A Prius parade descended on the Virginia Capitol on Thursday in protest of Gov. Robert F. McDonnell’s proposal to impose a $100 fee on alternative fuel vehicles as part of his legislative package on transportation funding.
Cars honked as they rolled past the Capitol as protesters holding signs shouted, “No hybrid tax!”