Environmental Activists In Md. Pressing For Clean Energy
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Environmental activists take a unique approach in pressing for clean energy.
Political reporter Pat Warren explains they want to get the attention of state lawmakers.
A coalition of groups is asking the General Assembly to step up the state's goals on clean energy.
Chesapeake Climate Action Network activists issue a waist deep warning that we're up to our necks in hot water.
"It is not unreasonable. Scientists tell us that we could see five feet of sea level rise in Maryland by the year 2100," said Mike Tidwell, Chesapeake Climate Action Network.
So what's that mean to us in 2014? The 2012 deluge from Superstorm Sandy led the state to conduct a study of rising sea levels and the results were added up. Maps show the projected risks in Baltimore, where areas in red have the most to lose--up to $100 million in damage.
In Ocean City, the red zone stretches north to Delaware. Yellow zones represent hundreds of thousands of dollars in property damage.
"Baltimore City, if we get five feet of sea level rise, $1.3 billion in impact, one medical facility gone, a school, a college, three museums, a church, 18 miles of road," Tidwell said.
The group believes doubling the state's commitment to clean energy from 20 percent to 40 percent of energy used is the answer.
"Is 40 percent possible? Absolutely. We know that wind and solar is growing at rapid paces. They've outpaced almost every other energy source," said Josh Tulkin, Maryland Sierra Club.
Cleaner energy, cooler planet, calmer seas. In 2013, the General Assembly passed the Maryland Offshore Wind Energy Act. This coalition is asking lawmakers to build on that.
Governor O'Malley this year vetoed a bill that would have delayed a wind farm project.
The state is moving forward on a wind farm off the coast of Ocean City.
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