Maryland Climate Impacts and Costs

Maryland is experiencing accelerating climate risks, including rising sea levels, more frequent extreme precipitation, intensified droughts, and increasing temperature extremes. These changes are causing significant land loss, infrastructure damage, and public health crises, necessitating costly adaptation measures such as seawalls, flood-proofing, and cooling systems.

• Sea level rise in Maryland has more than doubled over the last 30 years, increasing from 2.3 mm/yr (1993-2002) to 4.7 mm/yr (2013-2022). This has contributed to the loss of over 25,000 acres of forest and approximately 3,500 acres of farmland to tidal marsh since 1984.
• Coastal cities in Maryland are seeing a rise in 'sunny day' high tide flooding. In 2019, Annapolis experienced 18 days of such flooding, while Baltimore experienced 11 days. Projections suggest Baltimore could see between 50-155 days of high tide flooding by 2050.
• The Center for Climate Integrity estimates that Maryland will incur $27.4 billion in costs to construct seawalls by 2040 to protect public infrastructure from rising tides.
• Extreme precipitation is becoming more frequent, with 100-year storm events expected to occur every 20 to 50 years by the end of the century. Ellicott City experienced two 'one in 1,000 year events' within two years (2016 and 2018), with the latter delivering 6 to 15 inches of rain.
• Maryland has warmed by approximately 2.5°F since the start of the 20th century, and temperatures are predicted to increase by about 6°F by 2070 relative to the 1961-1990 average. The state is expected to have more than 60 additional days above 90°F by 2050 compared to the end of the 20th century.
• Temperature extremes are creating significant financial burdens for education; the Center for Climate Integrity estimates Maryland will face approximately $800 million in school cooling costs by 2025, affecting nearly 900,000 students.
• Intensified droughts and wildfires pose risks to water supplies and public health. Maryland averages 5,000 wildfires per year. Additionally, climate-driven extreme temperature and precipitation events have increased the risk of Salmonellosis, particularly in coastal communities.

APA

Center for Climate Integrity (2025). Maryland Climate Impacts and Costs. https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/CCI_Maryland_Impacts_Costs_2024.pdf

Chicago

Center for Climate Integrity. Maryland Climate Impacts and Costs. 2025. https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/CCI_Maryland_Impacts_Costs_2024.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for Climate Integrity |title=Maryland Climate Impacts and Costs |date=2025 |url=https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/CCI_Maryland_Impacts_Costs_2024.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforclimateintegrity2025maryland, author = {{Center for Climate Integrity}}, title = {{Maryland Climate Impacts and Costs}}, institution = {Center for Climate Integrity}, year = {2025}, url = {https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/CCI_Maryland_Impacts_Costs_2024.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }