Maryland joins greenhouse coalition

ANNAPOLIS, Md., April 21 (UPI) -- Maryland has joined a multi-state effort to curb global warming by cutting carbon dioxide emissions from power plants.

Gov. Martin O'Malley cited the potential threat global warming and rising sea levels pose to his state's coastline as a reason to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.

The initiative will create a cap-and-trade scheme for CO2 emissions beginning in 2009. The goal is to reduce CO2 emissions from power plants in 10 Northeastern states.

The Baltimore Sun said Saturday that Maryland's new Clean Air Act mandated joining the RGGI. The measure had been resisted by former Gov. Robert Ehrlich due to economic and grid reliability risks. Ehrlich signed the Clean Air Act nevertheless.

Maryland's primary power company, Constellation Energy, said it looked forward to working with state officials and saw the initiative as a "steppingstone" to a nationwide emissions policy, the newspaper said.