Secretary Grumbles Attends COP24 Convention in Poland

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Mark Shaffer

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Secretary Grumbles Attends COP24 Convention in Poland

BALTIMORE, MD (December 14, 2018) – Maryland Environment Secretary Ben Grumbles’ attended the 24th Conference Of the Parties (COP24) convention in Katowice, Poland, earlier this week with a delegation of states and foundations to learn from scientists, students, business leaders, and policy makers and send the message that Maryland and other U.S. states are more committed than ever to climate action based on science and smart environmental and economic policies.

“We shared strategies, met with potential new partners, and underscored that states are leading the way on combating climate change,” said Secretary Grumbles, who spoke at five different events at the 24th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Secretary Grumbles participated in a panel discussion with officials from California, Canada and Mexico on sub-national strategies in North America for meeting Paris Accord commitments, including use of carbon markets, improvements in transport electrification, and other strategies to foster transition to cleaner energy economies and more resilient communities. Officials from Massachusetts and Hawaii also were part of the delegation.

Secretary Grumbles also spoke on a panel about the implications of the U.S. midterm elections for climate action. Among the subjects discussed by the panel were growth of climate change as a voting issue and the importance of bipartisan teamwork. He used various sessions to highlight the efforts of the 17-state U.S. Climate  Alliance, the nine-state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, and Governor Larry Hogan’s environmental record, such as clean car rules and incentives and the phase out of the manufacture and use of the super polluting greenhouse gas, hydrofluorocarbon (HFC), a type of refrigerant.

Attending the convention was an opportunity to show, in particular, Maryland’s bipartisan nature of environmental leadership in areas of the country like the Mid-Atlantic region between Maryland and Virginia https://wapo.st/2BkVogr.

“Governor Hogan is committed to reducing greenhouse gases, growing a cleaner and greener economy, and instilling a culture of preparedness and resiliency,” Secretary Grumbles said. “The world also heard that America’s Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a thriving, bipartisan coalition of Maryland and eight other states, is gaining ground and showing other states how to cut carbon pollution in half while generating billions of dollars for cleaner energy and healthier communities.”