The Hopkins Energy Action Team (HEAT) will petition Maryland legislators to pass a bill controlling pollution in the state.
The Maryland Global Warming Solutions Act, passed to the state senate by Gov. O'Malley on Tuesday, would require the state to cut is greenhouse emissions 90 percent by 2050.
"Such a strong bill that supports clean energy, emissions reductions and investment in sustainability is at the top of our list," HEAT coordinator Julia Blocher said. "Since Maryland is one of the few states considering strong action against climate change, I'm really excited to see the kind of support for the bill we see from Maryland students, firms, businesses and some legislators."
HEAT is actively supporting this bill on and off campus. Last Tuesday, HEAT participated in Environmental Action Day by distributing information to students and sending over fifty hand-written letters to Maryland legislators in support of the GWSA.
Blocher said that HEAT, as well as environmental groups throughout the state, is shifting its focus toward legislators who now have to pass the bill.
"The passing of the GWSA will make Maryland a leader in the fight against climate change and really push the envelope for similar legislation in the rest of the US," she said.
Eco-Rep Jonathan Jacobs, said that while the GWSA makes noble strides, global warming is not a matter of diplomacy.
"Even though 25 percent by 2020 is a good start, it's really not going to do anything," he said.
"Carbon dioxide stays in the atmosphere for up to 200 years, so even if you cut it by 25 percent in 12 years, there will still be a significant increase. By the time we hit 2050, we're going to have a lot more problems."
Opponents of the bill argue it is essentially a tax on carbon dioxide and will result in the increasing electrical costs and in the damaging of Maryland businesses.
In 2006, the "Global Warming Solution Act" which preached similar environment ideals, was defeated in the Senate after estimation was given that roughly 3,000 jobs would be lost as a result of the bill.
In response to concerns that the legislation may hurt the economy, Jacobs argued that the bill lacks investment.
"If we take some of the taxes that we've been raising and put them into new technology, we can make it so companies don't have to pay independently or make the technology cheaper by 2020 so companies are not hurt," he said.
"If we have 12 years, especially if we put the money in it, we'll have new technology. Since the federal government isn't doing anything, let Maryland lead the way. If we can make technology cost effective, then companies will grow in a way that will not endanger the environment."
Nonetheless, the legislation has important implications for Hopkins, since Hopkins is doing so much to be green, with programs such as the Task Force, the Green Idea Generator Projects, and the revolving fund, according to Blocher.
The bill entails using a state system of financial penalties and rewards on Maryland businesses and industries in order to control the emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that increase the atmospheric temperature and thus polar ice melting.
Environmental groups also claim that the bill could help the government back more alternative sources of energy, such as wind and solar power, which would create more jobs.
