![[photo, Montgomery Park Business Center, 1800 Washington Blvd., Baltimore, Maryland]](/msa/mdmanual/14doe/images/1198-1-656.jpg)
c/o Dept. of the Environment
Montgomery Park Business Center, 1800 Washington Blvd., Baltimore, Maryland, February 2004. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Appointed by Governor: Lori Arguelles; Sue Briggum; Stuart A. Clarke; C. Richard D'Amato; Charles E. Fry; Lynn Heller; Bradley M. Karbowsky; Peter F. Murphy; Amy Owsley; John Quinn; Kelly Russell; Michael W. Tidwell; Peter Zadoretzky. Terms expire 2016.
Appointed by Senate President: one vacancy
Appointed by House Speaker: one vacancy
Ex officio: Nancy K. Kopp, State Treasurer; Joseph Bartenfelder, Secretary of Agriculture; C. Gail Bassette, Secretary of General Services; Frank W. Dawson III, Acting Secretary of Natural Resources; David R. Craig, Secretary of Planning; Pete K. Rahn, Secretary of Transportation; Lillian M. Lowery, Ed.D., State Superintendent of Schools; A. Leigh Williams, Esq., Director, Maryland Energy Administration; Donald F. Boesch, Ph.D., President, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science.
Staff: George S. (Tad) Aburn, Jr.
In April 2007, the Climate Change Commission was established by the Governor (Executive Order 01.01.2007.07). In November 2014, its mission and membership were expanded (Executive Order 01.01.2014.14).
To address the causes and results of climate change in Maryland, the Commission is charged with developing a Plan of Action with benchmarks and timetables for its implementation. For the Governor and the General Assembly, the Commission also provides advice and expertise on issues relating to climate change.
The Commission is assisted by the Adaptation and Response Working Group, the Greenhouse Gas and Carbon Mitigation Working Group, and the Scientific and Technical Working Group.
The Adaptation and Response Working Group is charged with developing a Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Maryland's Climate Change Vulnerability. The Strategy includes both short-and long-term measures that State and local governments may undertake in planning for and adapting to a rise in sea levels due to climate change.
The Working Group is staffed by two departments: Natural Resources; and Planning.
CLIMATE CHANGE & COAST SMART CONSTRUCTION WORKING GROUP
In November 2013, th Department of Natural Resources, with the Climate Change Commission, convened the Climate Change and Coast Smart Construction Working Group to assist in developing the recommendations mandated by Executive Order 01.01.2012.09.
The Working Group met to develop recommendations for the siting and design of new, reconstructed or rehabilitated State structures and infrastructure improvements to bridges, roads, sewer, water and drainage systems, and other essential public utilities. The recommendations include criteria to ensure such construction meets coast smart standards and plans for climate change conditions. The Working Group also considered applying the standards from the Climate Change and Coast Smart Executive Order to infrastructure projects partially or fully funded by State agencies.
In January 2014, the Working Group's recommendations were submitted to the Governor.
GREENHOUSE GAS & CARBON MITIGATION WORKING GROUP
Appointed by Commission Chair:
George S. (Tad) Aburn, Jr., Chair
Malcolm D. Woolf, Co-Chair
Staff: Brian Hug (410) 573-4125
A Comprehensive Greenhouse Gas and Carbon Footprint Reduction Strategy, as well as a detailed implementation plan, is to be prepared by the Greenhouse Gas and Carbon Mitigation Working Group. The Strategy sets goals to reduce Maryland's greenhouse gas emissions to their 1990 levels by 2020, and to eighty percent of 2006 levels by 2050.
The Working Group is staffed by the Department of the Environment and the Maryland Energy Administration.
SCIENTIFIC & TECHNICAL WORKING GROUP
Appointed by Commission Chair:
Donald F. Boesch, Ph.D., Chair
The Scientific and Technical Working Group is developing a Comprehensive Climate Change Impact Assessment to provide information and advice on the scientific and technical aspects of climate change. To develop the Assessment, the Working Group is inventorying Maryland's greenhouse gas emission sources and sinks; calculating Maryland's carbon footprint (a measure of the impact of human activity on the environment); investigating the dynamics of climate change based on current and future climate models and predictions; and evaluating the impact of climate change on agriculture, forest resources, fresh water supply, aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and human health.
In December 2012, the Governor directed the Working Group to review the sea-level rise projections established by the Climate Change Commission and published in the Maryland Climate Action Plan (2008) (Executive Order 01.01.2012.29). By March 31, 2013, the Working Group is to update those projections, based on an assessment of the latest scientific and federal guidance on climate change.
The Working Group is staffed by the University System of Maryland and two departments: Environment; and Natural Resources.
© Copyright Maryland State Archives