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Keep Your Beach Healthy!
Healthy beach practices such as cleaning up after your pet and avoiding swimming after a rainstorm are just two of the many tips found on www.marylandhealthybeaches.com This website provides tips for beach visitors to stay healthy and keep Maryland’s beaches clean, answers to frequently asked questions, printable materials, a list of informative links, and a list of contacts for visitors to find further information about Maryland’s beaches. Check it out before you go to the beach this year!
President Obama Announces Tough New Fuel Economy Standards
On May 19, 2009, President Obama announced tough new fuel economy standards and the first ever greenhouse gas pollution standards for cars. The program will begin in model year 2012. By 2016 the fleet average will be 35.5 miles per gallon, that is four years earlier than the CAFE law requires. The CAFE law required a 35 miles per gallon in model year 2020.
This is an average 5 percent year in increased fuel efficiency. More efficient cars mean savings to consumers at the pump. The projected oil savings of this program over the life of this program is 1.8 billion barrels of oil. The program is also projected to achieve reductions of 900 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions under the life of the program. That is equivalent to taking 177 million cars off the road or shutting down 194 coal plants.
Governor Martin O'Malley praised the President saying, “For too long, the states have had to lead the way in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Today, our states have a new federal partner in our fight to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. I applaud President Obama for his leadership on this issue and for working to establish national standards for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions for the transportation sector in our country.
“With this year's passage of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Act, committing our state to reduce greenhouse gases 25 percent by 2020, along with the our Administration’s actions to increase our use of renewable energy sources, reduce our individual energy consumption, and participate in the nation's first cap-and-trade program, Maryland is pleased to have a federal partner in our work toward a clean energy economy.”
Save October 3, 2009 for the Symposium on Environment, Justice, and Health in the Planning Process, Strategies for Maryland
Join the Maryland Commission on Environmental Justice and Sustainable Communities along with community groups, developers, planners, activists, public health experts, and state agencies for a discussion of the linkages between zoning, land use, public health, and environmental justice. Participants will identify the information needs, tools, and legal/regulatory changes that would help to incorporate these considerations into the planning and facility permitting process.
Contact: Lisa Nissley, Legislative Liaison, MDE, 410-537-3812 or Lisa.Nissley@maryland.gov.
Sponsored by MDE, Maryland Commission on Environmental Justice and Sustainable Communities, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygine, Maryland Department of Planning, and Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development.
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