Flickr Link with event photos by David F. Choy
On the evening of December 5, 389 Maryland residents from Montgomery, Anne Arundel, and Howard County gathered at the Good Hope Union United Methodist Church, eager to engage with legislators on their priorities this legislative session.
Legislators in attendance included Paul Pinsky, Director of the Maryland Energy Administration, Senator Brian Feldman (D-15), Chair, Senate Education, Energy and the Environment, Delegate Lorig Charkoudian (D-20), Delegate Pamela E. Queen (D-14), and Delegate Lily Qi (D-15).
Event participants consisted mainly of concerned residents, members of faith communities, and environmental groups from the Beyond Gas Maryland coalition. The action commenced with tabling by coalition members Action in Montgomery, Interfaith Power & Light, and the Maryland Sierra Club. Pastor Gerald Elston led prayers to begin the evening followed by moving speeches from a representative of each group on the intersectionality of health, housing, and climate. Maryland Sierra Club’s Conservation Chair Shruti Bhatnagar shared a personal story on the impacts of air pollution.
For months the Beyond Gas Coalition has conducted NO2 testing in apartments that use gas stoves. Due to the lack of data from the Environmental Protection Agency on NO2 indoors, the coalition has compared results to information regarding outdoor levels. Two fellow AIM members shared their testimony on the results from their homes and provided insight to the problems high NO2 levels can create in the homes, including respiratory issues such as asthma. A number from testing had been placed on the seat of each person attending and following these testimonies everyone was asked to raise their number. The crowd displayed an alarming number of red papers, which indicated the levels higher than what the EPA recommends for outdoor levels (100 parts per billion).
This powerful display was followed by breakout groups addressing different concerns including Healthy Homes, Affordable Housing, Green Jobs, and Networked Geothermal. Legislators participated and listened first-hand to the concerns of citizens regarding the need for clean energy in the home, including concern for costs and participation for renters. For this reason, the coalition is calling for Inflation Reduction Act funds to be used towards electrification, and the state’s EmPOWER energy-efficiency program, as well as other climate-focused policies and programs, to benefit all Marylanders, especially low-income households and those living in multi-family apartment buildings.
Read more about the event here and here.
