December 27th, 2017 by WCBC Radio

State lawmakers are drafting at least two bills for the coming General Assembly session aimed at cleaning up Maryland’s renewable energy supply, which includes polluting fuels such as household garbage and a paper-making byproduct known as black liquor. Proponents who have backed similar legislation in previous years hope concerns about climate change improve their chances. They say recent hurricanes, President Donald J. Trump’s support for fossil fuel industries and a recent series of articles in The Baltimore Sun could motivate politicians to act. The Sun reported that a state program sends millions of dollars from electricity ratepayers to paper mills and trash incinerators, one of which is Baltimore’s largest single source of air pollution.

But environmentalists nonetheless expect an uphill battle.