Clean Cars Passes in MD 2007 Legislative Session

The Clean Cars Act has been approved with no significant amendments by both the Maryland House and the Senate and is virtually guaranteed to pass out of Conference Committee this legislative session, which ends on April 9th. The Clean Cars Act regulates carbon dioxide emissions from all cars sold in Maryland and ensures that the state will greatly reduce its contribution to global warming. Continue reading

Maryland Adopts Historic Global Warming Law Mandating Greenhouse Gas Reductions from Power Plants

In a major victory against global warming, the Maryland General Assembly gave final approval Friday to the strongest power-plant cleanup bill ever passed by a legislative body in America. In addition to dramatically reducing nitrogen, sulfur and mercury pollution, the Maryland Healthy Air Act requires that the state join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a consortium of eastern states committed to mandatory CO2 reductions from power plants. Continue reading

Ehrlich's Land Funding Too Late, Watchdogs Say

Last week, Ehrlich unveiled the Clean Power Rule, his version of the initiative. But some environmentalists say that the regulation’s timetable and targets mean it “does half of what the Healthy Air Act does,” said Brad Heavner, director of the Maryland Public Interest Research Group, an environmental watchdog group. Although “the Healthy Air Act has been introduced four times,” he said, “I think some version of the bill will pass this year.” Continue reading