‘Renewable’ energy?

With the Maryland General Assembly legislative session set to begin Jan. 9 in Annapolis, Democrats and environmental groups are preparing to resume what has become an annual debate over how much renewable energy the state should strive to use. While a proposal to double the goal from a quarter to half of the state’s electricity failed last year, they say they are hopeful the dire climate forecasts will make the legislation an easier sell.

A coalition led by the Chesapeake Climate Action Network says a bill it is drafting has the support of enough members of both the House of Delegates and the Maryland Senate to pass by a veto-proof margin.

Sen. Brian Feldman, a Montgomery County Democrat who is sponsoring what is again being called the Maryland Clean Energy Jobs Act, said he thinks the recent federal report’s warnings about the perils of inaction on climate change are likely to persuade lawmakers. Along with weather hazards, the report known as the National Climate Assessment also predicted billions of dollars in economic losses related to climate changes by the end of the century.

“It makes the case even more compelling both on the economic and environmental