Events & News January 24
Events of Interest to CSGA
The Human Element / Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore's Healthy Harbor Initiative
Jan 24, 7 PM - Brown Advisory, Baltimore
Protect our climate from big highway pollution / Sierra Club
Jan 24, 7 PM - Webinar
Meeting / Climate Mobilization
Jan 24, 7:30 PM - Cedar Lane Unitarian Universalist Church, Bethesda
US Rebellion Day 1 / Extinction Rebellion
Jan 26, Noon - Pershing Park, Washington
Maryland Action on a Global Climate Emergency / Takoma Park Mobilization Environmental Committee
Jan 26, 4 PM - Piney Branch Elementary School, Takoma Park
Video Festival / Baltimore Green Forum
Jan 27, 4 PM - Maryland Presbyterian Church, Towson
Baltimore Clean Air Act Rally / Clean Air Baltimore Coalition
Jan 30, 4 PM - City Hall, Baltimore
Exploring Titan, Saturn’s Largest Moon / Cafe Scientifique
Jan 31, 6:15 PM - 49 West, Annapolis
Scary Headlines & Climate Science: What Does It Mean for Bmore? / Baltimore Peoples Climate Movement
Feb 2, 2 PM - Zion Lutheran Church, Baltimore
News, Information, and Opinion of Interest to CSGA
Proposed solar energy developments in Baltimore County draw opposition over loss of farmland, rural beauty - Baltimore Sun
The Baltimore County Council passed rules in 2017 to govern commercial solar projects, and since then developers have proposed about 20. But now community groups are challenging many of them, saying farmland isn’t the right place for commercial solar development.
Let the sun shine in Baltimore County - Baltimore Sun
Baltimore County can't afford to go full NIMBY on vital solar farms.
Climate change and the "tragedy of the commons" - Baltimore Sun
A student once tweeted about an extra credit activity in my psychology course, igniting a discussion about the “tragedy of the commons” — the idea that when masses of people engage in excessive consumption, it can have catastrophic environmental consequences. A bill in Congress revisits the idea.
How to win public support for a global carbon tax | Nature
Survey shows charges on emissions could be popular if revenues are given back to citizens, find Stefano Carattini, Steffen Kallbekken and Anton Orlo.
Pennsylvania the Newest State to Turn to Carbon Pricing | ClimateXChange
This legislative session Pennsylvania set its sights on an ambitious new carbon pricing strategy to combat climate impacts.
Brussels climate protest: More than 10,000 children skip school to join demonstration in Belgian capital | The Independent
More than 10,000 students skipped school again in Belgium to join a march demanding better protections of the globe’s fragile climate. Despite the rain and cold, the colourful protest march in Brussels was bigger than the initial one last week.
Students in Germany, Switzerland protest climate change | AP
Thousands of students are holding rallies across Germany and Switzerland to protest lack of action against climate change. The demonstrations taking place in dozens of cities Friday were inspired by a Swedish student's weekly "school strike." In Berlin, protesters focused on an upcoming political decision on when to end the use of coal in the country.
Mariner East pipelines can keep flowing as PUC rejects shutdown request | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
The residents argued that the company has not developed proper emergency management plans in case of a failure.
Another sinkhole appears in Chester County neighborhood, exposing Mariner East pipeline | Philly.com
A 5-foot wide, 10-foot deep sinkhole appeared in the backyard of a home on Lisa Drive in West Whiteland Township on Sunday. Authorities say it was caused by the failure of a water drainage system associated with the controversial Mariner East 1 natural gas pipeline.
Editorial: War of words over pipeline project turns ugly | delcotimes.com
It’s a pretty safe bet that nobody asked to have a pipeline carrying highly volatile natural gases placed in their neighborhoods, let alone in some instances in their backyards.
Amid litigation, US National Park Service seeks chance to rethink permit for Atlantic Coast Pipeline | S&P Global Platts
Action follows agency defeats in other 4th Circuit cases 'Categorical exclusion' to NEPA called into question The Trump administration is seeking to pull back and rethink the US National Park Service
Gazette editorial: Who are the real rogues? | wvgazettemail.com
A lobbyist for the natural gas industry told West Virginia legislators Tuesday that progress on a pipeline that stretches through the Mountain State was slowed because of “rogue environmental groups”.
Pipeline explosion in Noble County injures one, destroys 2 homes | The Daily Jeff
At least one person has been injured and two homes are believed to have been destroyed by a gas line explosion Monday morning on Smithberger Road in Noble County. “The fire (in the line) is dissipating and firefighters are fighting secondary fires in the area,” said Noble County Emergency Management Agency Director Chasity Schmelzenbach. “We also have one confirmed injury and the victim was transported to the hospital (in Marietta).”
Climate action relied on natural gas. Then CO2 spiked -- www.eenews.net
America has followed a simple formula for reducing carbon emissions this century: Retire old coal plants, replace them with natural gas, add a dash of renewables.
New York's Plan to Kill Coal Is Already Boosting Power Prices - Bloomberg
New York’s plan to put the state’s last coal-fired power plants out of business hasn’t even been approved yet and electricity is already trading like they’re shut.
Coal ash removal bill supported by Northam clears first committee in General Assembly | richmond.com
Legislation that would require the excavation of coal ash stored in Dominion Energy ponds across the state moved ahead amid lingering questions over how much it could cost.
Appalachian Power betting on renewable energy (Daily Mail WV) | wvgazettemail.com
Appalachian Power is betting big on renewable energy.
The road to seamless mobility | McKinsey
Urban traffic is bad and getting worse. Through seamless mobility, the use of connectivity, autonomy, and sharing technologies, cities can accommodate more traffic more efficiently.
To Get This Artist’s Message, You Have to Look Really Closely - The New York Times
With “This Land,” David Opdyke melds art and activism, hoping to inspire urgent changes in vision, one postcard, and viewer, at a time.
How Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Allies Supplanted the Obama Generation | The New Yorker
To watch the unlikely progress of the Green New Deal is to realize how much of the Democratic Party’s program and its sources of moral authority remain up for grabs, Benjamin Wallace-Wells writes.
US airlines have an abysmal carbon footprint - Vox
U.S. Military Report Warns Climate Change Threatens Key Bases | InsideClimate News
The report, requested by Congress in 2017, drew sharp criticism for being too thin on details and failing to show which bases are most at risk across the military.