The WDC Subcommittee on the Environment (WDC-SE) was established in October 2023 by outgoing WDC president Diana Conway, to address a gap in the issue-areas covered by existing subcommittees collected under WDC’s Advocacy Committee. After chairing the subcommittee for its first year, Diana handed the reins over to a new chair and is now helping to lead the Advocacy Committee. (Meet the new chair, Liisi Fidler, below.)

WDC-SE is proud that in our first legislative session, we were the lead advocates on two bills that passed both chambers and were signed into law by Gov. Moore.

Here’s a quick look at our first year, plus a 5-question survey to hear from you on your environmental priorities.

During the 2024 legislative session, we worked on the following bills:

Passed: Artificial turf inventory and disclosure. HB0457 directs the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) to build an inventory of artificial turf fields in the state, and requires sellers or producers to disclose to customers the full costs of plastic fields—beyond the sticker price—that communities may not fully appreciate, such as required maintenance, removal, disposal, and the replacement cycle. This will protect buyers and will also interrupt a disturbing pattern of dumping used fields. The bill also directs MDE to conduct a study of the industry in Maryland, in consultation with various industry and civic stakeholders.
Passed: Limit lead and PFAS in playground surfacing materials. HB1147 prohibits the installation, sale, etc. of playground surfacing materials with lead levels above 90 parts per million, or with intentionally added PFAS—the “forever chemicals” found in Teflon, fire-fighting foam, and thousands of consumer products. Lead is a known neurotoxicant, and PFAS are known to cause numerous serious health effects including multiple kinds of cancer, reduced vaccine efficacy, high cholesterol, low birth-weight and much more.
Bottle bill: The Maryland Beverage Container Recycling Refund and Litter Reduction Program (HB0735 / SB0642) has been introduced in multiple sessions, gaining momentum each time, including last session thanks to a large Bottle Bill Coalition led by Maryland Sierra Club. The relevant committees in the House and Senate both held hearings and took extensive testimony, but neither committee ultimately called the bill for a vote.

We are gearing up for the next session. The next legislative session is almost here—it runs from January 8 to April 7, 2025. WDC-SE will continue to focus on bills that accelerate implementation of the Maryland Climate Pathway report—and we need you! See below for what option works for you.

How you can help:

Tell us what issues matter most to you: fill out the survey here.
Join our Subcommittee on the Environment! Email Liisi.
Sign up for our WDC-SE updates and “call to action” emails when we need you to contact your legislators: Email Liisi.
Learn more about the legislative advocacy process on the WDC website.

Our subcommittee is now led by Liisi Fidler, who has been a resident of Montgomery County for over 14 years and lives in Bethesda with her husband and two daughters. Liisi worked in the past in the financial industry, most recently at Network for Good where she managed the financial operations team responsible for processing over $700 million in donations. Inspired by the vibrant community of environmental advocates in Montgomery County, Liisi has volunteered to lead the WDC Subcommittee on Environment and to bring together other community members passionate about the environment.