This article was republished with permission from 小萝莉影视’s news partners at .听Sign up for today.
This content was republished with permission from 小萝莉影视鈥檚 news partners at Maryland Matters. Sign up for today.
In 2017, the Montgomery County Council declared a climate emergency and committed 鈥渢o use all available powers and resources鈥� to reach the ambitious goal of zero carbon emissions by 2035.听
鈥淲hen the council set the goals for addressing greenhouse gas emissions, we did not know how we were going to achieve them 鈥� we really didn鈥檛 know,鈥� Montgomery County Executive Marc B. Elrich (D) said during a news conference earlier this week. Between 2015 and 2018, Montgomery鈥檚 greenhouse gas emissions declined by 3%.听
Elrich was one of the council members who led the 2017 climate resolution effort. Now, four years later, as county executive, Elrich has unveiled a 300-page聽聽to get to zero carbon emissions by 2035, which he said is one of 鈥渢he most ambitious climate goals in the country.鈥澛�
If greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase, there could be 60 days a year with temperatures rising above 95 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century, according to the county鈥檚 climate projections. And some of the county鈥檚 stormwater systems can no longer manage the higher levels of rainfall and frequency of flooding, Elrich said.听
鈥淪o much of our climate future 鈥� we don鈥檛 even have the authority to address because so many of the policy changes are made at the state level or the federal level,鈥� said Council President Tom Hucker (D), the chair of the Transportation and Environment Committee and former state delegate.
鈥淚 can tell you from eight years of serving in Annapolis, the state government rarely does the right thing until Montgomery County does the right thing, so we all need to step up and stay involved to get Montgomery County laws on the books to help the state take action as well,鈥� he continued.听
Earlier this year, the Maryland Department of the Environment released a聽聽outlining the state鈥檚 plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% of 2006 levels by 2030 and to reach net-zero emissions by 2045. In addition, a state聽聽that called for a 60% reduction by 2030 moved through the General Assembly this year, but collapsed at the last minute when the House and Senate聽.听
Montgomery鈥檚 climate action plan lays out 86 actions that would get the county to reach its goal, and officials plan to start working on 75 of the proposals this year. But it is a 鈥渓iving document,鈥� which means that every year, the county will revisit the plan to evaluate new climate technology, determine specific funding sources for that fiscal year, plan legislative agendas at the county, state and federal level, and establish which climate actions to prioritize, officials said.听
The county will spend at least $650,000 this year to implement the plan, according to Adriana Hochberg, the county鈥檚 climate change coordinator.听
One of the most fundamental proposals included in the plan is to decarbonize the electricity supplied to the county. After two failed iterations, a state聽聽that allows Montgomery County to purchase renewable energy on the behalf of all residents passed the General Assembly this year.听
Through a new program, residents would have to actively opt out if they wanted to buy traditional electricity coming from natural gas or coal. Currently, residents have to actively choose to buy power from renewable energy sources.听
鈥淩ight now, the state鈥檚 trajectory towards 100% clean energy is a bit more slow than the county鈥檚 trajectory towards zero greenhouse gas emissions, so the county needs a way to get the electricity that is used by its 1 million residents and businesses to be 100% clean as quickly as possible,鈥� said Del. Lorig Charkoudian (D-Montgomery), a lead sponsor of the bill.听
Montgomery County鈥檚 community choice energy program will make it possible to get to a 100% clean energy grid and to negotiate a price that is lower than what residents are currently paying, Charkoudian said.听
Since half of Montgomery鈥檚 greenhouse gas emissions came from buildings in 2018, electrifying buildings is another critical proposal included in Montgomery鈥檚 climate action plan.听
According to this year鈥檚聽, the county plans to adopt the 2018 International Green Construction Code, which the council will review in September.听
The county will also develop regulations for building energy performance standards, which requires large buildings to improve their energy efficiency, Hochberg said. There will be a public hearing on the bill next month, she said.听
鈥淚f we cannot pass the [Building Energy Performance Standards] and do not adopt the green building code, there is no climate plan; there is no achieving goals by 2027 or 2035,鈥� Elrich said. 鈥淭here is no in between.鈥澛�
The county鈥檚 plan also includes a proposal to ban natural gas in new buildings, but Montgomery leaders claim that state law needs to be modified to allow local jurisdictions to pursue a natural gas ban, which the county will work on as part of its state legislative agenda for next year, Hochberg said.
On transportation, which is the second largest source of greenhouse gas emissions for the county, the plan includes proposals to expand public transit and bike lanes, limit major new road construction and create tax incentives for electric vehicles.听
In February, Montgomery County Public Schools signed a contract to add over 300 electric school buses to its fleet over the next few years, with the goal to gradually convert its entire fleet to electric buses by 2035.听
Elrich emphasized that for this plan to work, personal action is needed as well. This means no more natural gas stoves, replacing gas-powered cars with electric vehicles, using public transit more often, and installing solar panels on rooftops.听
鈥淲e can lay out the plan, we can dictate everything we can dictate, but if people don鈥檛 adopt it, if people aren鈥檛 willing to do it, we won鈥檛 get there. This has to be something that we鈥檙e all in together,鈥� he said.听
One difference between the draft plan released in December and the final climate action plan is a Community Justice Academy, which includes 鈥渃ommunity ambassadors鈥� who will be responsible for educating their neighbors about climate change and encouraging carbon-reducing behavior.听
Although having an ambitious goal to reduce all emissions by 2035 is a step forward, Del. Kumar P. Barve (D-Montgomery), the chairman of the House Environment and Transportation Committee, said it is misleading to call the county鈥檚 document a 鈥減lan.鈥�
鈥淎 plan has specific goals, milestones and metrics against which to measure attainment,鈥� Barve said.听
For example, a proposal to mandate that half of the county-owned vehicles be electric or that a certain number of megawatts of solar energy be installed by a certain date, are actions that would entail a plan, he continued. Barve has been critical of county council legislation that he argues has limited the ability of property owners to install large solar arrays on agricultural land in Montgomery.听聽
Still, 鈥渨e鈥檙e moving the ball down the field and we鈥檙e going further with this plan than we鈥檝e ever gone before in terms of providing clarity and a blueprint for the actions that the county needs to do to achieve our zero emissions goal by 2035,鈥� Hochberg said.听
鈥淣o plan can be perfect 鈥� knowledge is always evolving, technology is evolving 鈥� this is a fast-changing field,鈥� she said.听
With the final climate action plan completed, the next immediate steps will be to establish a framework for the Community Choice Energy Program, tighten up building energy performance standards and expand public transit, Hochberg said.听
鈥淲e鈥檙e kind of like an octopus 鈥� we can鈥檛 afford to focus on one thing and then go to the next, there is work happening on all fronts,鈥� she said.听
The county has 鈥渢o figure out how to walk and chew gum at the same time,鈥� Elrich said. 鈥淐limate change is not going to be some sequential thing.鈥澛�
