Riverkeeper
Perdue’s PR Campaign of Deceit
(Posted by Bob Gallagher)
A group of legislators, following a script conceived by the public relations machine of Perdue and the Maryland Farm Bureau, have joined in Perdue’s unprecedented effort to derail an environmental lawsuit that has singular importance for the Chesapeake bay watershed. The effort is unprecedented in the extent to which Perdue and its enablers are attempting to use the media and the political process to win a case that they have as yet been unable to win in court.
Here is the story.
Read MoreIt’s Time to Put Up or Shut Up
(Posted by Chris Trumbauer, Anne Arundel County Councilman)
(This is fifth 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.)
If your family is like mine, the struggling economy is making every household economical decision a critical one. I cringed when I got my latest fuel oil bill and turned the thermostat down a couple of degrees to try and lessen the pain of the next bill. My wife and I both own fuel-efficient cars, but we still restrict driving as much as possible to delay filling up our tank as long as we can. Like many families, we are putting off important purchases, hoping to get a little more time out of a pair of shoes or a winter coat.
None of this, however, dampens my strong desire for clean water and healthy air. Pollution is pollution whether it contaminates our environment in a recession, or in an economic boom.
Read MoreWorcester County Commissioners Kick the Clean Water Can Down the Road
(Posted by Kathy Phillips.)
In an extremely disappointing move, the Worcester County Commissioners have failed to take some very simple steps to protect our local waterways while contributing to state-wide efforts to save the Chesapeake Bay.
At the Worcester County Commissioners December 6th regular meeting, the County Commissioners threw out the Phase II Watershed Implementation Plan documents that county staff had spent months preparing and voted 6-1 not to submit their plan to MDE by the December deadline. In fact, they intend to bury the document and “take their time” cooperating.
Read MoreReducing Pollution and Improving Communities in Anne Arundel County
(Posted by Chris Trumbauer)
Last month, I introduced, along with County Council Chairman Dick Ladd, bipartisan legislation(Bill 79-11) to create a dedicated funding source to reduce polluted stormwater runoff in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.
Our county has a strong attachment to our local waterways, as we have a large and vibrant recreation community, a robust maritime industry and over 500 miles of shoreline. I introduced this bill not just because I want clean rivers and streams and a healthy Chesapeake Bay – but because I care about where my family lives, works and plays. Cleaning up our polluted runoff will help make our waterways safer, and building this infrastructure to reduce pollution also greatly improves our communities.
Read MoreFoundation Among Critics of O’Malley’s Law Clinic Interference
(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.
Read MoreO’Malley Piles On
(Posted by Tom Horton.)
Governor Martin O’Malley presumably thinks he’s helping Maryland poultry growers and processors by pressuring the University of Maryland’s environmental law clinic to drop out of a lawsuit aimed at stopping chicken farms from polluting.
But the pollution is real, it’s substantial and it’s not going to get better until the governor and agricultural interests acknowledge we have a problem with too much poultry manure.
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