Maryland and its economy depend on a healthy Chesapeake Bay. Right now, the state is negotiating with energy company Exelon over water quality threats posed by the Conowingo Dam — and who will pay to address them. However, Congress is considering legislation that will take away Maryland's authority to negotiate and allow Exelon to stick state taxpayers with the bill to repair any water quality damage the dam causes.
Proposed federal legislation (The Hydropower Improvement act of 2015) would strip Maryland of its authority to hold hydropower dam owners accountable for water quality violations and end critical protections for fish and wildlife at hydropower dams. This federal power grab would give Maryland's authority to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), an obscure agency based in Washington, D.C. that regulates the interstate transmission of natural gas and electricity.
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4 comments:
If so, this is the perfect reason to abolish the EPA.
After all, what other purpose could they ever serve?
Read the article, this is the Republican congress watching out for their big business buddies.
As usual with most Republicans the little folk and the environment get shafted.
10:16 are you that naive. We waste millions of tax payer money to " save the bay" and don't get a nickel,s worth. The liberal way tax tax & tax more and receive Nothing.
Here is the email I sent to Lisa Murkowski, the Republican who proposed the bill. Could only find email her through her website http://www.murkowski.senate.gov/public/
Dear Lisa,
I am a registered Republican in the state of Maryland. I just read about your proposed bill to weaken state controls in favor of more control by the EPA.
Why would a Republican want to weaken the power of the state to protect its own environment, in favor of the federal government? How do you think the EPA handled the BP spill? Was barring people and reporters from public land and ignoring US court decisions to suspend dumping millions of gallons of addition chemicals into the gulf of Mexico appropriate in your mind? I assume that this is a sign of the influence that large power companies have over the head of the Dept of Energy and Natural Resources. Let me give you a little info on the second half of your title, natural resources, which you seem to be ignoring. In Maryland we have the Conowingo Dam at the top of the Chesapeake Bay. This Dam is supposed to be maintained by Exelon Power (you may know them). This Dam has been left unmaintained and unchecked by our horrible former governor Martin O'Failly. Now we have Larry Hogan coming in and actually doing something about it and you are going to prevent him from being able to. The reason this is important is because the Conowingo Dam is holding back years and years worth of run off sediment that has washed down from Pennsylvania, our neighbor to the north who's agriculture industry treats the Chesapeake Bay like its personal septic tank. Every time there are heavy rains some of this sedement washes down into our Bay, where it chokes out the oxygen levels killing animals across the entire food chain. You can see this in our blue crab pots because the large heavy crabs, which are normally the hardiest, will start showing up dead in the pots after a heavy rain. These large heavy crabs also have the greatest oxygen needs and so when we get innendated with run off they suffocate right in the crab pot and die first. A giant federal organization has across the board rules and standards that may not suit the unique needs of a specific state. If this Bill passes my state will take a huge hit both financially, and to its greatest natural resource. DONT PASS THIS BILL.
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