Fifty Years Later: The Moon Landing and Our Overheating Earth Back Home

For all I know, the old yellow mailbox was there on the porch on July 20th, 1969. The Takoma Park homeowners must have gotten letters from relatives and friends afterwards, everyone explaining where they were when astronauts first walked on the moon in black-and-white TV glory.

When I moved into the house in 1991, the aged, free-standing mailbox was still there, at the top of the porch stairs. For nearly two decades it remained. Then, about ten years ago, something odd happened. Bigger and bigger storms – including the 2011 Derecho — kept blowing the unattached mailbox (and lawn chairs) right off the porch. I put a stone in the back of the mailbox but the winds got stronger still. Last year I finally gave up and screwed in a new mailbox directly into the porch wall. 

As extreme weather stories go, I’m lucky. I don’t have the surprise cascades of water flooding my basement or trees pancaking whole rooms like many Washingtonians. But here’s the truth: We all have climate stories now. 

And so this week, as we mark the 50th anniversary of the first moonwalk, many people are thinking much more about the planet Earth than the faraway moon. So much has changed here at home since those first “Earthrise” photos appeared from Apollo. The massive, white polar ice caps, seen in the late 1960s through wispy clouds on an otherwise blue planet, have substantially disappeared. “It’s like looking at your ‘60s high school yearbook photo compared to who you are now,” says author and activist Bill McKibben. “That old Earth is long gone.”

What a leap of sci-fi imagination it would have taken for those 1969 Americans, so full of optimism and technological hope, to see us now: Washingtonians in July 2019 scrambling to the roofs of their cars to avoid drowning after six inches of rain fell in some places in one hour. The same city experiencing a heat index approaching 115 degrees by the end of July. Shopkeepers, meanwhile, in Annapolis and Norfolk and worldwide, boarding up waterside shops because those same blue oceans – so serene from space – are now massively swelling and crashing into continents.  And across the DC area, beginning about ten years ago, varieties of the heat-loving Palmetto tree are now able to grow year round.

The same scientific method that got us to the moon has, for the past 50 years, been telling us the planet will warm and unravel if we keep using fossil fuels. Yet here we are today, still with no inspired national strategy – no 10-year moonshot plan — to solve the problem in the few years scientists say we have left to try. 

Core blame, of course, rests with the oil companies like ExxonMobil who have funded climate-denying politicians and think thanks to confuse and lie to the public. But one day soon, to the sound of investigative gavels pounding on Capitol Hill, those same companies will wish they were the tobacco industry based on the staggering health implications and legal liabilities of their deception.

More immediately and locally, I worry about the media coverage of this crisis. Climate-enhanced Lyme disease is skyrocketing (I’ve suffered for ten years). Local vinyards are shutting down due to devastating early blooms. And, god, the flash flood warnings – beeping and flashing — blow up our phones almost daily. And yet the coverage in the Washington Post and elsewhere – while growing – is patently insufficient in volume and in connect-the-dots context. Yes, Post cartoonist Tom Toles’ keeps it real with his near-weekly focus on the irony and urgency of climate disruption. But shouldn’t every reporter and nearly every columnist be covering the issue with Tolesian frequency and urgency? Baltimore Sun columnist Dan Rodricks, a lifelong fisherman who has seen his favorite rivers and bays physically changed by global warming, recently pledged that one-third of all his columns will henceforth relate to climate change in some way. “What story is bigger than this?” Rodricks asks.

Finally and sadly on this moon walk anniversary, here’s a message for Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos: stop investing in space travel. Bezos’ quixotic company Blue Origin won’t be colonizing space anytime soon if that fragile, original experiment with organized life shuts down on the only blue planet we know. Better to put those billions of dollars into expanded Post coverage of the climate crisis and into direct financial investments in a moon-shot plan to electrify the Earthly economy with wind and solar power within the decade. 

Finally, finally: If I could write a hopeful letter to the 2069 inhabitants of my home – both the Takoma Park ones and the planetary occupants – what would I say? Here’s what: “Happy 100th anniversary of the moon walk. Thank god we learned the right lesson – in time.” 

Mike Tidwell is director of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network

The Road to Clean Energy Victories in Maryland

underwater press conference
My second week at CCAN I stood knee deep in the Baltimore Harbor in a dress and waders cleaning up debris that the tide had washed in. I knew at that moment that I had joined an organization that would do anything to bring clean energy to Maryland. That morning, Mike Tidwell, CCAN’s director, stood waist-deep in the Inner Harbor along with members of the Sierra Club, Working Families, the MD State Chapter of the NAACP, faith and student leaders to show why clean energy was desperately needed in Maryland.
As a broad, diverse coalition spoke behind a podium immersed in water — we began our journey to fight for a 40% clean energy standard in Maryland. The initiative was bold, innovative — yet not impossible. It would take all of us across Maryland working together for years to raise Maryland’s clean energy standard.
We are proud to announce that we have had a momentous year for climate change legislation in Maryland. Governor Hogan signed into law the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act that will slash emissions by 40% by the year 2030. On Monday, April 11th, on the final day of the 2016 session, the Clean Energy Jobs Act passed the Maryland General Assembly. The Clean Energy Jobs Act raises Maryland’s clean electricity standard to 25% by 2020 and opens up new avenues of funding for minority, small and women-owned businesses in the renewable energy industry. The Clean Energy Jobs Act will ensure that Maryland keeps dirty fossil fuels in the ground while diversifying and expanding Maryland’s wind and solar industry.
For those of you that have worked alongside us for the past few years — you know that these victories did not come easily. It took all of us working together and exploring bold new ways to secure a clean energy future for Maryland.
On the opening day of session in 2015, over 200 activists stood out in the bitter, January cold, holding windMD-Campaign-RPS-Feature turbines and placards demanding a clean energy future for Maryland. Lawyer’s Mall was crowded with legislative champions Senators Feldman and Madaleno along with labor, civil rights, health and faith voices. Trisha Sheehan, of Mom’s Clean Air Force stated, “Children are among the most vulnerable to climate change, especially from extreme heat events, widespread disease and increased air pollution. Maryland has the ability to double its use of clean energy by 2025. We need to act now to cut our reliance on the dirty fossil fuels that are polluting our air and making us sick.”
We worked hard throughout the session to show legislators that reaching a 40% clean energy standard was an achievable goal. A goal that was not only supported by environmentalists — yet was a vital component of our state’s pursuit towards achieving a higher standard of public health, economic well-being and to turn the tide on the injustices that the fossil fuel industry had wrought on low-income and minority communities.
Over a hundred activists gathered once again in Annapolis to meet with their legislators and rally through the 16449235219_a09bfcc716_znight in February of 2015. Despite the tremendous show of support we ultimately did not pass clean energy legislation in the 2015 session. Legislators balked at the idea of a 40% goal and instead we began to work on a 25% by 2020 standard. We knew that if we hit this critical benchmark that it would put us on the trajectory to achieve a 40% clean energy standard by the year 2025, and we could truly double wind and solar in Maryland. The bill failed in the Senate Finance Committee — yet the result of all of our efforts was that we built an unshakeable foundation and garnered the support of powerful Senate leaders and built a groundswell of grassroots activists.
After the 2015 session, we did not rest. Instead we continued to work so that we would flood Annapolis with voices from across Maryland. In September, Pope Francis arrived in D.C. with a message for people of faith and conscious, “Never have we so hurt and mistreated our common home as we have in the last 200 years….Yet all is not lost. Human beings, while capable of the worst, are also capable of rising above themselves, choosing again what is good, and making a new start.”
davis climate in the pulpitsFaith communities across Maryland answered the Pope’s call to care for creation. Together with Interfaith Power and Light, the Chesapeake Climate Action Network hosted “Climate in the Pulpits” — a statewide effort of faith communities to raise up creation care and climate change in their worship services. On the weekend of September 23rd, over 87 congregations celebrated Climate in the Pulpits by inviting climate activists to give sermons, dedicating their worship message to climate change and signing postcards to their legislators urging them to pass the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act and the Clean Energy Jobs Act. Maryland State Delegate Dereck Davis (D-25 Prince George’s) participated by speaking on clean energy during the Sunday service at Forestville New Redeemer Baptist Church in District Heights. “Pope Francis has reminded us that addressing climate change is one of the great moral issues of our time,” said Del. Davis. “It is imperative that Maryland acts on climate so that we can create real, broad, and sustainable prosperity.”
Communities across Maryland also spoke out for the Maryland Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Act (GGRA) — Maryland’s legal mandate to curb greenhouse gas emissions which was set to expire in 2016. The Maryland Climate Commission held meetings across the state from the Eastern Shore to Frostburg, MD. Activists told the Maryland Climate Commission members that not only did they want the to renew the GGRA, they also wanted to strengthen the benchmarks and goals, in order to address the growing threat of climate change.
Next, CCAN and the Maryland Climate Coalition hit the road and embarked on our Energy, Health, and Climate Expo tour throughout Maryland to build a strong alliance of clean energy advocates across the state. Events were held in Baltimore City/County, Charles County, Harford, and Howard Counties. Each event featured our clean energy champions from across the state including — Senator Middleton, Delegate Davis, Delegate Brooks, Delegate Robinson, Maryland Congresswoman Donna Edwards, and spokespeople from Maryland Congressman Chris Van Hollen’s office. Green organizations came together to teach community members about sustainability and how we can work together to combat the growing threat of climate change. This effort culminated in growing our grassroots movement and increased the amount of minorities and low-income community members engaging in our campaigns and advocating for clean energy policies in Maryland.
At the start of the 2016 session, we gained a powerful ally in Maryland State Senator Catherine Pugh, who introduced the Del. Dereck Davis addresses the congregation at Forestville Baptist Church as part of Climate in the Pulpits.Clean Energy Jobs Act — a bill with a landmark $40 million investment in workforce development and grants for small, minority, and women-owned businesses in the renewable energy industry. On the first day of session, Senator Pugh, lead sponsor of the Clean Energy Jobs Act, gathered with key committee leaders at a press conference in support of the Clean Energy Jobs Act and stated, “We’ll grow Maryland’s clean energy economy in a way that increases the diversity of workers and business owners. As we create more than 1,000 new solar jobs per year, we’ll also give more Marylanders pathways to good-paying careers.”
Throughout the 2016 legislative session our activists never let up. After record-setting blizzard Jonas, our activists dug themselves out and attended lobby days urging their legislators to vote YES on both the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act and the Clean Energy Jobs Act. Over the course of the last four months we held over a hundred legislative meetings with many grassroots advocates lobbying for the first time. Tracey Waite, founder of Harford County Climate Action and first time grassroots lobbyist said to one staffer, “When I think about climate change and our future, I feel as if I am in a boat and it has all these holes in it. If someone doesn’t plug the holes then this boat is going to sink. You have the power with both of these bills to stop the ship from sinking, Will you support these bills?”
Governor Hogan signs the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act into lawOn March 17, the Maryland General Assembly approved the landmark Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Act of 2016. The bill, SB 323/HB 610, renews the 2009 Maryland law that set a goal to reduce climate-polluting greenhouse gas emissions statewide by 25 percent by 2020. The 2016 bill further extends the goal to a 40 percent reduction by 2030, requiring deep, long-term cuts in pollution. It received final approval by the House of Delegates after the Senate approved the bill in a 38-8 bipartisan vote in late February.
The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act commits Maryland to one of the highest climate goals in the country, following California and New York.
Following this victory, Mike Tidwell proclaimed, “This bold, and strikingly bipartisan, commitment to stronger climate action will help protect Maryland’s economy, health, and increasingly flooded shoreline. Our climate-vulnerable state is now leading the way, showing that reducing carbon pollution is not a partisan question, but an urgent necessity.”
And in the final hours of the 2016 Maryland General Assembly, the Clean Energy Jobs Act was sent to Governor Hogan’s desk. The Clean Energy Jobs Act passed with an overwhelming bi-partisan majority of members of the House of Delegates with a vote of 92-43 and in the Senate with a vote of 31-14. Lead Senate Sponsor, Catherine Pugh stated, “This vote is a major step toward growing Maryland’s clean energy economy. This bill will create good-paying jobs and healthier air for communities in Baltimore and across Maryland that urgently need both.”
The journey that started with an underwater press conference in Baltimore City has now spread across the state of Maryland. Thanks to all of you that have made this possible and let’s continue to win more victories for Maryland, for our climate, and for our future.

Meet Me In Annapolis

This is our moment. This year, climate activists across Maryland have the opportunity to pass bold climate legislation that will pave the way for a clean energy future.
This year, we can slash climate-disrupting emissions by not only renewing the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act, but also strengthening and extending its goal — to achieve a 40% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.
This year, we can chart the way to power our homes and communities with wind and solar. The Clean Energy Jobs Act will raise our clean energy standard to 25% by 2020 and invest a landmark $40 million into workforce development training in under-served communities.
With the support of legislative champions, including Senators Catherine Pugh and Mac Middleton and Delegate Dereck Davis, we are in a strong position to reach the finish line.
But to get this legislation to Governor’s Hogan’s desk, we need one critical thing: For you to raise your voice in Annapolis and demand that your legislators vote YES!
We are hosting a series of regional lobby nights to ensure our legislators hear our voices before every key hearing and vote. Come to Annapolis and raise your voice for clean energy with fellow climate activists from your community.
You’ll have the opportunity to meet with fellow climate activists in your district and receive the latest political updates on where your legislator stands on our priority climate bills. Following a training and orientation, you’ll meet face-to-face with your legislator.
Sign up for your regional lobby night by clicking on the link that corresponds to your area:

By passing both the the Clean Energy Jobs Act and the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act, we will slash greenhouse gas emissions, create thousands of good green jobs, and power more of our homes and communities with clean, renewable sources like wind and solar. We’ll also invest millions of dollars into job training to help underserved communities gain pathways to family-sustaining jobs.
Join us in Annapolis and let’s keep building Maryland’s clean energy future.

Activists Across Maryland Advocating for Clean Energy

This fall CCAN activists and allies advocated for climate change in their communities and in congregations across the state. From over 85 congregations raising up climate justice from the pulpit, to creative community action highlighting the dangers of sea level rise, to our six-stop “Clean Energy Roadshow” sweeping Maryland this fall, we’re engaging hundreds of new people in our movement to strengthen Maryland’s most important climate policies.
After we renew Maryland’s landmark Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act, our top legislative priority in 2016 will be expanding Maryland’s clean electricity standard. This is the number one way we can drive investment into new solar and wind power, moving our state away from fossil fuels, cleaning up our air, and creating thousands of new jobs in the process. Thanks to all of our volunteers and allies, we’re building great momentum behind this campaign this fall!
Sign up for our upcoming roadshow events in Harford County, Howard County or Baltimore City to get involved.

Davis CIP 2
Delegate Davis addresses New Redeemer Baptist Church as part of Climate in the Pulpits

On the weekend of September 27th over 87 congregations participated in a joint initiative between the Chesapeake Climate Action Network and Interfaith Power & Light. Faith communities lifted up climate change and creation care following the Pope’s visit to our region. Congregations held workshops, hosted local climate activists and dedicated their services to addressing climate change. Maryland State Delegate Dereck Davis spoke at  Forestville New Baptist Church and quoted Pope Francis. He stated, “Climate change is real, humans are contributing it … it disproportionately impacts the poor and most importantly people must persuade their elected officials to lead the way.” He then added, “It is imperative that Maryland act on climate change so that we can create real sustainable prosperity and to protect future generations and I will honor that promise.” We were happy to have Delegate Davis along with thousands of parishioners across Maryland advocating for Maryland’s two top environmental legislative priorities — expanding Maryland’s clean energy standard and renewing Maryland’s Climate Action Plan.
Harford County Climate Action Commemorates Hurricane Isabel
On October 19th, Harford County Climate Action marked the one-year anniversary of the People’s Climate March and the 12th anniversary of Hurricane Isabel by bringing community awareness to the dangers of sea level rise driven by climate change.
Harford County residents gathered in Havre de Grace at the Tidewater Grill. Climate activists carried a 25-foot blue banner to demonstrate the effect that sea level rise caused by climate change would impact their community.
Tracey Waite, President of Harford County Climate Action warned about the impacts of inaction and retold the story of the devastating damage that Hurricane Isabel wrought on the Havre de Grace community — destroying their boardwalk and damaging many of the city’s streets. Waite addressed the crowd stating, “Global warming has caused sea levels to rise just over one foot since the beginning of the industrial revolution, when carbon-based fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas became the primary source of power.  We are supposed to see another foot of sea level rise by 2045. … If we do nothing, we are on track for approximately another four feet of sea level rise by the end of the century.  If we do nothing about greenhouse gas emissions, if we go about ‘business as usual, the data indicates that we can expect an increasing risk of very high storm surges. The hundred year flood will become the every year flood.”
CCAN activists and allies like Harford County Climate Action are working to mitigate the impacts of climate change and turn the tide on sea level rise by transitioning away from dirty fossil fuels. By working to enact policies like a 25% clean energy standard, we can protect businesses like the Tidewater grill which are only 2 feet above sea level and communities such as Havre De Grace.
On the Road with CCAN
This fall, CCAN along with the Maryland Climate Coalition, hit the road with our “Energy, Health, and Climate Expos”. The
Prince George's County Clean Energy Expo
Prince George’s County Clean Energy Expo

expos are designed to bring new activists into the climate movement by partnering with green energy businesses, elected officials and environmental advocates. Each expo shows Marylanders across the state how they can act at home, in their communities and in the halls of Annapolis to address climate change.
In Baltimore County, residents joined Delegates Dana Stein, Benjamin Brooks, Shelly Hettleman, Adrienne Jones, Steve Lafferty and Dan Morhaim to discuss policies such as renewing the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act – a landmark law that would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25% by 2020 – as well as increasing Maryland’s clean energy standard. Residents enjoyed vegan soul food and visited with green businesses. Young climate activists had an opportunity to learn more about the different kinds of energy and their impact with the fun, interactive Energy Arcades program from Climate Change Maryland.
In Southern Maryland, residents learned about why there is such a great need to transition away from dirty fossil fuels, as they heard Cindy Peil speak about the Cove Point gas export facility under construction in Lusby and the dangers of fracked gas. Senator Middleton pledged to support a 25% by 2020 clean energy standard and to work to ensure that minorities and underserved communities benefit from clean energy legislation through workforce development and training programs. Residents also heard how they can act in Charles County from Commissioner Ken Robinson — who installed the first residential wind turbine on his property and helped to fight the expansion of the Morgantown coal-powered generating station. Residents had the opportunity to visit with local solar companies such as Solar Tech and learn how to make their homes more energy efficient with local businesses such as Complete Home Solutions.
At the Prince George’s County expo over 100 residents were able to hear about grants and opportunities available to them to make their homes more energy efficient. Residents also heard from their local and state elected officials about the progress that Prince George’s County is making on climate change. From inspiring speakers such as Adam Ortiz from the PG Dept. of Environment who spoke on local initiatives to make clean energy and environmental measures affordable for residents. He also spoke about how Prince George’s is leading the state in waste diversion from landfills, and about the need to fight polluting sources of energy being concentrated in certain neighborhoods. Delegate Davis again pledged his support for increasing Maryland’s clean energy standard and spoke about how dirty energy impacts Prince George’s county’s most vulnerable residents. Expo attendees also were able to interact with local advocacy groups such as Greenbelt Climate Action Network, University Park Solar as well as local green businesses and agencies.
Join Delegate Lisanti in Harford County on November 12th at the Edgewood Boys and Girls Club. Hear from our own Mike Tidwell and Delegate Lam in Howard County on November 17th in Columbia. Learn about how our clean energy policies will take shape in the coming year at the Baltimore City Roadshow being held on November 21st! Sign up for a roadshow near you today!

Coastal Residents Learn About Real Time Climate Solutions at Town Hall Meeting

The impacts of climate change are already apparent in Hampton Roads.  The state’s vulnerable coastline continually floods communities, impacting the lives of hundreds of thousands of people throughout the region. Coastal residents are eager to learn and act on solutions to protect the communities they love from the rising tides. On Tuesday, December 2, nearly sixty people came out to CCAN’s “Save Our Coast” town hall and book event to do just this.
Folks who attended the event first heard from Stephen Nash, author of Virginia Climate Fever. Nash spoke about the impacts of climate change on Virginia’s communities and the drastic need for clean energy solutions throughout the state. He warned that the average temperature in the state is on the rise, and Virginia could see double the amount of about 90ºF days by 2065. The first ten months of 2014 have been the hottest on record, since temperature monitoring began around 130 years ago.DSC_0275
Hampton Roads has it much worse though. The region stands as the most vulnerable climate impact zone in Virginia and could see triple the amount of 90ºF days by 2065 – a threat to their beloved ecosystems and public health alike. Even more frightening is the fact that the rate of sea level rise is accelerating along the state’s coast, and it’s already at the doorsteps of thousands of residents. Much of the development in Hampton Roads rests on subsiding land, putting the region at risk for higher rates of sea level rise than will be seen elsewhere along the Atlantic Coast.
This scale of climate disruption does not have to become a reality though, as Virginians can still take action to curtail its greenhouse gas emissions. Nash explained that Virginia can still make the switch to renewable energy at a fast pace to lessen the impacts of climate change on the state. If Virginia acts now to curtail its greenhouse gas emissions, the rate and extent of relative sea level rise will be significantly less than it will be if the state continues to ground its energy consumption on fossil fuels.
One person in the audience asked Nash what the most important thing to be done is. He proceeded to say that taking part in the public conversation is the most important thing for people to do if change is to occur. Mike Tidwell, CCAN’s Executive Director, also answered this question. His response, to which Nash conceded, was for the state to pass the Virginia Coastal Protection Act that would commit the state to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI).
Dawone Robinson, CCAN’S Virginia Policy Director, went on to explain the Virginia Coastal Protection Act and RGGI to coastal residents, activists and students alike who gathered for the town hall.  RGGI is a cooperative effort between nine states that caps carbon pollution from power plants while requiring them to purchase allowances for every ton of carbon pollution they emit in a given year. By committing to RGGI, the state of Virginia could see over $200 million in revenue by 2020. This revenue would then be appropriated as follows: (1) 50% to Hampton Roads for coastal adaptation efforts; (2) 35% to statewide energy efficiency and clean energy programs; (3) 10% to southwest Virginia for economic development assistance; and (4) 5% to RGGI for programmatic expenses.
Nash and Tidwell both touched on the difficulty of passing bills that support clean energy in Virginia’s legislature. Dominion, the state’s largest energy provider, is highly engrained in the state’s politics, often leaving the statehouse polarized on issues. However, the circumstances for reducing fossil fuel emissions in Virginia have changed radically with the EPA’s Clean Power Plan Rules that will be finalized next summer. The Clean Power Plan is calling on Virginia to reduce its carbon emissions by 38% by 2030, and RGGI stands as the best mechanism for the state to meet its emissions reduction goals while providing funding for essential climate adaptation, mitigation and sustainable development measures across specified regions of the state.
DSC_0271So what is the most important thing that needs to be accomplished to lessen the impacts of global climate change on Virginians? How can people on the ground help to push for climate solutions that will alleviate the sea level rise impacts that coastal Virginians are facing now, while protecting the future livelihoods of citizens across the state? Each of the featured panelists had a similar position on this question, which was asked by a dedicated activist who attended the town hall and book event. The answer? Get out there and join the public conversation. Talk to your friends, family members, acquaintances, and anyone else you can about bringing climate solutions to the state.
Teresa Stanley of Virginia Organizing, the first panelist that the group heard from on Tuesday night, spoke about the importance of collective action to make climate solutions a reality for the state. Communities need to be informed of the risks that Virginia faces under climate change, and communities need to be further mobilized to ensure that the state’s precious neighborhoods, culture and landscapes are protected from the projected devastating impacts.
Quan Williams of Virginia New Majority, the event’s second panelist, said that for her, the most important thing is to get the Virginia Coastal Protection Act passed. Climate change is an issue that know no races, borders, or classes. It will affect us all. And for many of us, climate change is a phenomenon that is capable of presenting itself in life or death situations. We must start acting now, together, to take charge of state initiatives that will turn the tide in the people’s favor.
The last panelist, Dr. Michelle Covi of Old Dominion University, spoke of planning and infrastructure initiatives that need to be updated to best prepare for sea level rise and climate change impacts along the state’s coast, home to the largest naval station in the world. Dramatic storm events are no longer the only driver on flooding in Hampton Roads; heavy downpours and high tides are now of high concern for flooding as well. Municipalities in Hampton Roads need to start working now to improve the resiliency of their highly prized social fabric. Evacuation routes need to be readjusted to include transportation to low-income neighborhoods and houses need to be raised to fight recurrent flooding.
But all of this will come at a cost. Improving infrastructure in Hampton Roads to combat the extensive occurrence of flooding that the region already experiences will need funding to occur, and fast. This is a problem that each and every single municipality in coastal Virginia is facing, and their solution may come sooner than expected. That is if the Virginia Coastal Protection Act passes. In a regular year, CCAN would not dream of getting this bill passed in such a short amount of time. But the fact is that the playing field has changed in Virginia.
The EPA’s Clean Power Plan will be finalized in the summer of 2015, and the state will need to cut 38% of its emissions by 2030. No matter what, the state will need to curb its carbon pollution, and the best option for Virginia is to get ahead of the game and start generating revenue by capping emissions. CCAN has already collected hundreds of petitions to support the Coastal Protection Act and is working to organize communities in support of the bill.
So what’s next? For one, sign the petition to urge your legislators to act if you haven’t already. Also be on the lookout for CCAN’s next actions, which will include a press conference on the bill with the support of coastal elected officials and a coastal lobby day at the state house to push the bill forward. State legislators must understand the immediacy of the threat in Hampton Roads. Together, we can make this happen.

Climate Activists Invade Dominion Riverrock

Riverrock dried up rivers t-shirt

What does global warming have in store for outdoor sports enthusiasts?

WHEEZING RUNNERS (from more intense allergy seasons)

DRIED UP RIVERS (from more intense droughts)

CODE RED AIR QUALITY (from more intense heat waves)

And who’s the top contributor of climate pollution in Virginia? Dominion Power.

Sponsoring events like Dominion Riverrock, Richmond’s annual outdoor sports festival, can’t erase the company’s huge contribution to the global climate crisis. If Dominion wants good PR, the company should not only sponsor community events, like Riverrock, but also make a real commitment to clean energy, like wind and solar power, instead of building more and more massive fossil fuel plants.

That’s the message we’re bringing to Dominion Riverrock on this weekend in Richmond. Sports enthusiasts who are also fans of a stable climate are wearing t-shirts bearing the message while participating in events.  

They’re even adding to the fun by entering photos with folks who agree with our message into the event’s Instagram contest!  How fun is that? Check out the photos:

Riverrock dried up rivers t-shirt

For an idea of how increased extreme weather, like droughts and floods, are already in the picture from climate change, check out this Huffington Post piece.

Climate studies have warned us to expect more frequent and intense extreme events, such as heavy rain and snow storms, along with heat waves. While weather variability is nothing new, the wild swings in weather — termed “weather whiplash” and that have recently occurred across the Midwest and South Central states during the past few years, from record flood to record drought and back to record flood — may be an example of what’s in store as global warming continues to alter the atmosphere.

To learn more about how climate change affects air quality, check out the recent report on the topic from the Union of Concerned scientists, which projected that Virginia would be one of the top 10 most affected states.

Ground-level ozone, the primary component of smog, is generated by chemical reactions between nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) triggered by heat and sunlight. Warmer average temperatures from a changing climate may elevate ozone concentrations in many parts of the country, especially in and around urban areas.

Warmer temperatures also are associated with stagnant air conditions that can cause ozone pollution to settle over an area and remain for extended periods of time.

The UCS analysis, which used the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Environmental Benefits Mapping model, calculated national impacts and ranked the 10 states most likely to experience the worst health impacts and highest costs in 2020.

In terms of costs, it found that California would be hit hardest, followed by Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan, North Carolina, New Jersey and Virginia. These states are most vulnerable because they have a combination of the largest number of residents living in urban areas, large numbers of children and seniors, and high levels of nitrogen oxides and VOC emissions from vehicles and power plants.

And finally, for more information about allergies and climate change, check out this early spring Huffington Post piece.

The planet is getting warmer, and human behavior is responsible. The changing climate has brought early spring, late-ending fall, and large amounts of rain and snow. All of that, combined with historically high levels of carbon dioxide in the air, nourishes the trees and plants that make pollen, and encourages more fungal growth, such as mold, and the release of spores.

We will be paying a wretched price in the coming months for the behavior fueling the explosion of pollen, which are the tiny reproductive cells found in trees, weeds, plants and grasses. By all accounts, there will be more pollen this year than ever before.

Most trees release their pollen in the early spring, while grasses do so in late spring and early summer. Ragweed makes its pollen in the late summer and early fall.

And pollen production is only part of the impact that global warming is going to have on allergies and asthma — and our health overall.

In areas of the country experiencing prolonged heat and drought, dust will worsen air pollution, exacerbating asthma and other respiratory diseases. In other regions, climate change will affect the insect population — their stings and bites can provoke fatal allergic reactions in sensitive individuals — as well as the proliferation of such vines as poison ivy. Poison ivy thrives with increased carbon dioxide, and as a result, now makes a far more potent urushiol — the oil that causes poison-ivy-triggered rashes — than in the past.

Study: VA & MD vineyards dead by 2050

Map - Conservation International and EDF study - shifting wine growing regions

Global warming will shift world’s wine-growing regions

Have a favorite local vineyard in Virginia or Maryland?  Make sure to get its wine while you can. A study released recently by Conservation International and Environmental Defense Fund found that the world’s wine-growing regions will shift as the planet heats up. While other studies have examined the impact of climate change on specific wine-growing regions, like California, this is the first one I’ve seen that provides global maps. 

Check out the map I pulled from Environmental Defense Fund’s Google Earth flyover video:

Map - Conservation International and EDF study - shifting wine growing regions

Why will the warming of the planet by a few degrees have such a dramatic impact? Wine grapes are incredibly delicate crops. Even small changes in temperature can mean the difference between a $100 Cabernet Sauvignon and cooking sherry. With ripening timelines shifting, some vintners in California have been forced to harvest their fruit in the middle of the night to get it when it’s cool. Warming can also bring more risk of bacterial diseases, like Pierce’s disease, to vineyards.

Athena Vineyards in Heathsville, VA participates in Climate Impacts Day in May 2012

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No, not our wine too!

Napa Valley

As a full-time climate activist, I have no illusions about the severity and impacts of global climate change. More than anyone, climate activists bear the heavy burden of this astonishingly vast problem and feel incredibly personally invested in doing everything in our power to halt and reverse global warming. So given my deep moral and professional interest in climate impacts and my fairly decent knowledge base on the subject, it takes a lot to thoroughly depress me.

Napa ValleyNapa Valley, CA

But this is pretty depressing.

As a foodie and wine enthusiast (don’t worry, I go local and organic as much as I can), I was disheartened to hear that climate change could put a big squeeze on the premium wine industry in California. By 2040, the effects of rising temperatures could reduce the amount of land suitable for growing premium grapes by 50 percent. Gasp! No, don’t take our wine!

The effects of climate change on the Australian wine industry are already well-documented, receiving widespread news coverage and concern in one of the world’s most climate-affected countries. Warmer temperatures make grapes mature faster, affecting the quality of the end product. Experts claim that those with the most sophisticated palates may be able to taste the difference in vintages from the past few years. During the devastating drought that affected Australia from 2005 until recently, some grape yields were down as much as 40%. When you’re talking about a A$6 billion industry, that’s a problem.

Now researchers at Stanford University have recognized a similar pattern in California wines, and the California wine industry represents an even more impressive $18.5 billion chunk of the U.S. economy. The study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Research Letters last month, suggests that climate adaptation strategies could be applied to limit the projected losses. Wine growers could plant in new locations and use more heat tolerant varieties of grapes, alter the design of vineyards, and adjust winery processing procedures.

Just one more reason to keep fighting the good fight. Gotta have my vino!

 

Global Heating Causes Earthquakes

Number of earthquakes worldwide in 1990: 16,590—-number in 2008: 31,777
-U.S. Geological Society National Earthquake Information

I have to say that when I first started hearing about this possible connection a couple of years ago, I was kind of a skeptic. Part of me reacted, “Hey, we’re already contending with head-in-the-sand people Continue reading