Meeting state climate targets will require spending $15 billion per year on emissions reductions and sequestration projects, according to a September presentation by the Maryland Department of Environment.
The target is downscaled from worldwide estimates that climate mitigation will cost the equivalent of 3% of GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Since Maryland’s annual GDP is approximately $500 billion, the rule-of-thumb, 3% target would equal $15 billion per year or more than $2,400 for each Maryland resident. A spending rate of $2,400 per person is roughly equivalent to what the state spends on primary and secondary education.
How much are other states spending on climate?
- California, the state with the largest climate budget in the country, is scheduled to spend $48 billion or $1,223 per person in its 2024 budget. The equivalent in Maryland would be $7.6 billion per year.
- Minnesota’s 2024 climate budget is $2 billion or $350 per person. The equivalent in Maryland would be $2.2 billion per year.
- New York budgeted $4.2 billion or $225 per person in 2023. The equivalent in Maryland would be $1.4 billion per year.
State agencies are in the process of creating a tracking system to determine how much current spending is related to climate mitigation, adaptation, and sequestration.