Climate Change Plans For Maryland (Baltimore, Cumberland: sales, insurance, house)

[The Very Man Himself]

The linked piece below is specific to MoCo, but I thought it might be a good starting point for a more general discussion on Climate Change issues in Md. It's hard to get an overall picture of what, if anything, is happening around the state in terms of plans etc. I have a sense that the answer is not much.

What's going on with the Baltimore incinerator? Staying open or not?

With ice melt and sea rise likely to get worse, plus increased storm strength and frequency would you buy a house close to water on the bay, or ocean front?

Should new development be made more difficult in these areas? Is flood insurance mandatory? Should it be?

Climate change is having a big effect on agriculture in other parts of the world. I have a sense that poultry aside, (which is not really affected), because Md does not have a dominant cash crop, it's not an issue for agriculture in Md,.....for now.

When we all switch to electric cars how will the state replace lost gas tax revenue?

Hope we can keep this positive, and not degenerate into politics. I, for one, won't respond to any postings by deniers.

Aah luuv the declaration by MoCo CCers that they must implement a massive global emergency effort....

What Climate Emergency? | Seventh State

[North Beach Person]

Originally Posted by The Very Man Himself

The linked piece below is specific to MoCo, but I thought it might be a good starting point for a more general discussion on Climate Change issues in Md. It's hard to get an overall picture of what, if anything, is happening around the state in terms of plans etc. I have a sense that the answer is not much.

What's going on with the Baltimore incinerator? Staying open or not?

With ice melt and sea rise likely to get worse, plus increased storm strength and frequency would you buy a house close to water on the bay, or ocean front?

Should new development be made more difficult in these areas? Is flood insurance mandatory? Should it be?

Climate change is having a big effect on agriculture in other parts of the world. I have a sense that poultry aside, (which is not really affected), because Md does not have a dominant cash crop, it's not an issue for agriculture in Md,.....for now.

When we all switch to electric cars how will the state replace lost gas tax revenue?

Hope we can keep this positive, and not degenerate into politics. I, for one, won't respond to any postings by deniers.

Aah luuv the declaration by MoCo CCers that they must implement a massive global emergency effort....

What Climate Emergency? | Seventh State

Of course you won't.

As far as Maryland not having a dominant cash crop you need to look again.

https://www.nass.usda.gov/Quick_Stat...state=MARYLAND

https://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanua...html/agri.html

https://mda.maryland.gov/Documents/2...Menu-Stats.pdf

Have you ever raised chickens, or any poultry?

[The Very Man Himself]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

Of course you won't.

As far as Maryland not having a dominant cash crop you need to look again.

https://www.nass.usda.gov/Quick_Stat...state=MARYLAND

https://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanua...html/agri.html

https://mda.maryland.gov/Documents/2...Menu-Stats.pdf

Have you ever raised chickens, or any poultry?

Thanks for the links. They reinforce my original statement that Md doesn't have a dominant cash crop. In every list something will be first. At 30% of total I wouldn't call corn "dominant". If it went away, it wouldn't be ruinous, and finding alternatives not too difficult.

The point I'm getting at is that as yet Md has not seen the sort of threats that California has had to its most valuable crop...grapes.

No, I haven't raised chickens or poultry, and neither have most people. Have you raised kangaroos?

[westsideboy]

Tiger Mosquito mitigation would be a good place to start. They have popped up in Cumberland over the last two years and are nasty little things. I hate to spray and kill insects, but I will be spraying around my house this spring to try and kill these guys off. They made being outside misery by mid-summer.

[bufflove]

Originally Posted by The Very Man Himself

It's hard to get an overall picture of what, if anything, is happening around the state in terms of plans etc.

The one thing that's affected me (positively) is the state upping its renewables requirement. As of 2020, electricity suppliers have to obtain 20% of their sold power from renewables. That goes up to 50% by 2030. Breaking that 50% down a bit further: 14.5% of a supplier's electricity retail sales must come from solar power by 2030. The state's offshore wind generating capacity must also reach 400 megawatts in 2026 and increase to at least 1,200 megawatts by 2030.

The 20% by 2020 requirement caused my SREC (Solar Renewable Energy Certificates from my rooftop, residential solar system) value to shoot up dramatically. My 10 SRECs from 2019 were sold off for about $4 each. My 10 SRECs from 2020 were sold off for about $70 each (netting $700 on top of having effectively no electricity bills and Pepco sending me an annual check for my excess production). It's a great way to leverage supply and demand to encourage others to add renewable power. I'm sure in a couple of years my SRECs will go back to being pretty near worthless, but if so that means renewable supply has increased to meet the imposed demand.

[North Beach Person]

Originally Posted by The Very Man Himself

Thanks for the links. They reinforce my original statement that Md doesn't have a dominant cash crop. In every list something will be first. At 30% of total I wouldn't call corn "dominant". If it went away, it wouldn't be ruinous, and finding alternatives not too difficult.

The point I'm getting at is that as yet Md has not seen the sort of threats that California has had to its most valuable crop...grapes.

No, I haven't raised chickens or poultry, and neither have most people. Have you raised kangaroos?

You need to talk to the Secretary of Agriculture about how the loss of corn won't be ruinous and let him know so your ideas can be implemented.

Of course, twenty years on the State's farmers are still wrestling to find a replacement for tobacco. I'm sure that the loss of corn won't have that kind of impact.

Originally Posted by westsideboy

Tiger Mosquito mitigation would be a good place to start. They have popped up in Cumberland over the last two years and are nasty little things. I hate to spray and kill insects, but I will be spraying around my house this spring to try and kill these guys off. They made being outside misery by mid-summer.

Wait until you have people opting out and the sprayer is shut off in front of their house and turned on at the next one. And then shut off for the next, etc.

The Department of Agriculture runs the mosquito program. Start in Allegany County, maybe the Health Department or your local Ag Commission, and work up.

[westsideboy]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

You need to talk to the Secretary of Agriculture about how the loss of corn won't be ruinous and let him know so your ideas can be implemented.

Of course, twenty years on the State's farmers are still wrestling to find a replacement for tobacco. I'm sure that the loss of corn won't have that kind of impact.



Wait until you have people opting out and the sprayer is shut off in front of their house and turned on at the next one. And then shut off for the next, etc.

The Department of Agriculture runs the mosquito program. Start in Allegany County, maybe the Health Department or your local Ag Commission, and work up.

I doubt we have any formal sketter spraying up our way. I've only seen the Tiger Mosquito the last two years in the city limits. I am not sure "the authorities" even know they are here.

They were legion around my house last year, so even a private spraying of my property combined with some better efforts at making sure to get rid of standing water and hopefully I can avoid a plague of them. They don't seem to fly far away from where they hatched from what I have read.

Hopefully the 6 week long snow pack and multiple sub-freezing spells will knock them back a bit too.

[westsideboy]

Corn is a C4 plant. It does well with warmer temps. and handles drier conditions better. The increases in CO2 we are seeing shouldn't affect it too much, although you will find various other opinions on the matter on a deep dive of the literature. It is a complicated question.

Fruit trees will not do as well if winters get too warm. Most of them need a certain number of days in the 30s and 40s every winter to stimulate fruit production.

[The Very Man Himself]

Originally Posted by bufflove

The one thing that's affected me (positively) is the state upping its renewables requirement. As of 2020, electricity suppliers have to obtain 20% of their sold power from renewables. That goes up to 50% by 2030. Breaking that 50% down a bit further: 14.5% of a supplier's electricity retail sales must come from solar power by 2030. The state's offshore wind generating capacity must also reach 400 megawatts in 2026 and increase to at least 1,200 megawatts by 2030.

The 20% by 2020 requirement caused my SREC (Solar Renewable Energy Certificates from my rooftop, residential solar system) value to shoot up dramatically. My 10 SRECs from 2019 were sold off for about $4 each. My 10 SRECs from 2020 were sold off for about $70 each (netting $700 on top of having effectively no electricity bills and Pepco sending me an annual check for my excess production). It's a great way to leverage supply and demand to encourage others to add renewable power. I'm sure in a couple of years my SRECs will go back to being pretty near worthless, but if so that means renewable supply has increased to meet the imposed demand.

That's interesting, I hadn't realised those goals were in place. I had thought I had missed the boat on roof solar. I'll take another look. Shoulda done it 10 years ago. Now we are debating a move. The house is 50 years old and would need a new roof before solar. I'm inclined to sell it cheap and let the next people do what they wish. The Very Woman wants to spend on repairs to get a higher price. I tell her you never recover all the money you sink in.....

[The Very Man Himself]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

You need to talk to the Secretary of Agriculture about how the loss of corn won't be ruinous and let him know so your ideas can be implemented.

Which ideas did I suggest?