![[photo, Montgomery Park Business Center, 1800 Washington Blvd., Baltimore, Maryland]](/msa/mdmanual/14doe/images/1198-1-656.jpg)
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: Paul G. Pinsky
Appointed by House Speaker: Dana M. Stein
Montgomery Park Business Center, 1800 Washington Blvd., Baltimore, Maryland, February 2004. Photo by Diane F. Evartt.
Staff: George S. (Tad) Aburn, Jr.
c/o Department of the Environment
Montgomery Park Business Center, 1800 Washington Blvd., Baltimore, MD 21230
(410) 537-3255
e-mail: george.aburn@maryland.gov
web: www.climatechange.maryland.gov
www.mde.maryland.gov/programs/marylander/pages/mccc.aspx
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 ramifications of climate change in Maryland, the Commission developed a Plan of Action with benchmarks and timetables for its implementation. For the Governor and the General Assembly, the Commission provided advice and expertise on issues relating to climate change.
Effective June 1, 2016, the Climate Change Commission was reconstituted and established by statute in the Department of the Environment as the Commission on Climate Change (Chapter 429, Acts of 2015).
The Adaptation and Response Working Group developed 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 use to plan for and adapt to a rise in sea levels due to climate change.
The Department of Natural Resources, and the Department of Planning staffed this working group.
CLIMATE CHANGE & COAST SMART CONSTRUCTION WORKING GROUP
In November 2013, the 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 for bridges, roads, sewer, water and drainage systems, and other essential public utilities. The recommendations included criteria to ensure that 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., Co-Chair
Stuart A. Clarke, Co-Chair
Michael Powell, Co-Chair
Staff: Brian Hug (410) 573-4125
A Comprehensive Greenhouse Gas and Carbon Footprint Reduction Strategy, as well as a detailed implementation plan, was prepared by the Greenhouse Gas and Carbon Mitigation Working Group. The Strategy set 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 was 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 devised 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 inventoried Maryland's greenhouse gas emission sources and sinks; calculated Maryland's carbon footprint (a measure of the impact of human activity on the environment); investigated the dynamics of climate change based on current and future climate models and predictions; and evaluated 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 of the Climate Change Commission, published in the Maryland Climate Action Plan (2008) (Executive Order 01.01.2012.29). Based on an assessment of the latest scientific and federal guidance on climate change, the Working Group updated those projections in March 2013.
The Working Group was staffed by the University System of Maryland, and the Department of the Environment, the Department of Natural Resources.
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