Chesapeake Bay Action Plan

(This ninth installment in our series, What’s It Going to Take?, looks at how the environmental community can regain the initiative and build the political will necessary to clean up the Chesapeake Bay.)

In this exclusive interview with the Bay Action Plan, Chesapeake Bay Program Director Nick DiPasquale says that the costs of cleaning the Chesapeake Bay are significant, but manageable.

“No time is a good time when you’re talking about trying to implement very costly pollution control measures,” DiPasquale said. “But when you spread that cost over the life of a project…you find that the cost to individual households is a few dollars a month. Compare it to cellphone or cable costs, it puts things into perspective.”

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(This eighth installment in our series, What’s It Going to Take?, looks at how the environmental community can regain the initiative and build the political will necessary to clean up the Chesapeake Bay.)

In this exclusive interview on the state of the Chesapeake Bay, former Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening tells the Bay Action Plan that it’s time to broaden the base of citizens willing to speak out on behalf of the Bay:

“We have got to get the message out. Social media is a good opportunity to do this. We have got to reach people who don’t automatically think of themselves as environmentalists. We have to reach the younger enthusiastic generation that can easily depose a dictator in Egypt or start a whole movement here. But they can’t get together and do something that is so essential as getting mercury out of our air and water?”

“A good healthy Bay and good healthy communities surrounding the Bay are just good economics,” the former governor says. “I’ve got a beautiful 9-year-old daughter. There are regular times when we are afraid to even let her go in the Bay. Now that is just truly ridiculous.”

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We agree, Gov. Glendening! Share this post using the buttons below, and then follow us at @bayactionplan!

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(This is sixth in an ongoing series of posts on What’s It Going to Take?: A look at how the environmental community can regain the initiative and build the political will necessary to clean up the Chesapeake Bay.)

In this exclusive interview, Maryland state Sen. Paul Pinsky tells the Bay Action Plan that, “We shouldn’t be taking our cue from the Tea Party,” when it comes to cleaning the Chesapeake Bay. “The correct response to them is to ask, ‘What is the right thing to do?’ We shouldn’t allow them to shape the dialogue.”

“We have a Democratically controlled legislature, we have a Democratic governor,” Sen. Pinsky said. “To allow those people to slow any kind of efforts down is a tragic mistake.”

“We have to take an aggressive, offensive approach, and not just respond to these people. We shouldn’t be back on our heels. We should be moving forward.”

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(Posted by Jeanne McCann.)

Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley’s attempt to get the University of Maryland Environmental Law Clinic to drop its water pollution case against Hudson Farm  has drawn criticism from a long list of environmental, legal and news organizations. Joining the list is a somewhat unexpected institution – the Town Creek Foundation.

Foundations don’t regularly take public stands on policy, but in this case Town Creek has sent a letter to Dean Phoebe Haddon of the University of Maryland Law School expressing thanks for the Dean’s strong response to the governor and the foundation’s continued support for the law clinic’s work. It’s important to note that while Town Creek funds a variety of conservation organizations, it has also donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the state of Maryland over many years for environmental efforts on everything from climate change to offshore wind to the Bay TMDL Watershed Implementation Plan.

The Senior Bay Scientists and Policymakers applaud Town Creek for making its views known publicly on this important issue.

At a meeting on November 22nd, the Senior Bay Scientists and Policymakers also voiced their opposition to the Governor’s actions and said “Interfering with ongoing civil litigation against one of the largest polluting sources in the Chesapeake Bay – the poultry industry – sends the wrong signal to all concerned with the restoration of this abused, but great body of water.”

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Here is some local television coverage from our June 30, 2011, action in the Anacostia River protesting the 28th year of not meeting the Clean Water Act deadline. We got terrific national and local media coverage.

At the event organizers called for for readily-achievable actions by Prince Georges County, the District of Columbia, states and the EPA to put the River and all bay rivers on a path to reach the Clean Water Act’s long-postponed fishable and swimmable goal. (See our press release.)

Thanks to all who came out, and to the Anacostia Watershed Society and the Anacostia Riverkeeper for co-sponsoring. Here’s hoping that we won’t see a 29th year.

“Anacostia River needs cleaning, environmentalists say,” June 30, 2011, WJLA ABC Channel 7:

“Protesters Take Plunge Into Anacostia River,” June 30, 2011, Fox 5:

“Protesters Say Anacostia Plunge Is Cleanup Call,” June 30, 2011, WUSA9

(Footage courtesy Lauren Gentile):

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