Environment
Maryland's air, water, green spaces, public health and natural legacy havebeen well protected. Smart Growth, passedby the Maryland General Assembly in 1996 to control suburban sprawl , protect green spaces and preserve Maryland's rural legacy has been called a model for the nation by Vice President Al Gore and columnist Neal Pierce. Govenor Glendening has taken aggressive steps to reduce air polution by making the Vehicle Emissions Inspection program mandatory and consumer friendly.
Fostering enviremental stewardship and responsibility:
-Rural Legacy
-Summer Youth Employment
-Belt Woods ( Purchased to preserve Old Growth forest)
-Recovery Program for 60,000 acres of Wetlands
-Rewnable Energy- solar panels on schools
Using directed growth to protect natural areas:
-Smart Growth
-Wild Lands
-Brownfields
-Smart Growth Job Creation Tax Credit
"The other 49 states should take an early, hard look at Maryland's breakthrough 'Smart Growth' policy...Finally, one American state has done a reality check, recognized sprawl developement's incredibly heavy costs, and started thinking about potential savings- fiscal, social, environment- from curbing state subsidies."
-Neal Peirce, Syndicated Columnist