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Mahogany tide staining Chesapeake Bay
A mahogany tide is turning the Chesapeake Bay a reddish brown in places, lowering oxygen levels and killing fish. Jay Apperson, a spokesman for the Maryland Department of the Environment, says state officials began monitoring early this year because of the warm winter and heavy rains last year that washed pollution into the bay. Apperson […]
Maryland not meeting ozone standards
Maryland is not meeting federal ozone standards and isn’t likely to do so without federal policies to address pollution blowing in from other states. That’s the word from a new clean-air report issued Monday by the Maryland Department of the Environment. The report says the percentage of days with good or moderate air quality rose […]
EPA to reduce gas drilling pollution
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is issuing the first-ever standards to control air pollution from gas wells that are drilled using a method called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, but not without making concessions to the oil and gas industry. The regulation is expected to be officially announced later Wednesday. President Barack Obama in his State […]
Chesapeake Bay gets D+ in new report card
Heavy rains and a hot summer harmed the Chesapeake Bay’s health last year, earning it the second worst grade on a yearly report card issued Tuesday by the University of Maryland’s Center for Environmental Science. The center gave the bay a D+ in 2011, scoring only slightly better than in 2003, the worst year for […]
Senate gives initial OK to doubling flush tax
ANNAPOLIS — The Maryland Senate has given preliminary approval to doubling the state’s “flush tax.” The Senate on Saturday rejected two amendments offered by Sen. E.J. Pipkin, R-Cecil. One of the amendments would have put a firewall around the money raised from the tax to prevent the revenue from being used for purposes other than […]
No settlement in law school clinic poultry pollution suit
Lawyers have not reached a settlement in a poultry pollution case filed by a University of Maryland environmental law clinic. U.S. District Judge William Nickerson said in a filing Thursday that while a settlement had not been reached, some progress was made in a settlement conference before Judge Paul W. Grimm on Wednesday. Attorneys in […]
Sewage leak closes shellfishing near Baltimore
Maryland environmental officials are warning the public to avoid waters of the Chesapeake Bay and the Patapsco River near the site of a sewage main break. Shellfish harvesting has also been closed at the mouth of the Patapsco and nearby portions of the bay. The 54-inch main broke Sunday at a Baltimore County pumping station. […]
Settlement talks to be held in law clinic-poultry pollution case
Attorneys in a poultry pollution case filed by a University of Maryland environmental law clinic will try to settle the dispute during a conference in U.S. District Court in Baltimore. The clinic represents plaintiffs suing Hudson Farm and Perdue Farms Inc., claiming they are polluting a nearby waterway. Gov. Martin O’Malley has criticized the lawsuit. […]
Poll: Study of fracking is needed
ANNAPOLIS — More than 70 percent of Marylanders want a controversial natural gas drilling technique to be studied before it is allowed in Western Maryland, according to a poll released on Tuesday. The poll, commissioned by Chesapeake Climate Action, a nonprofit group dedicated to fighting global warming, found that 71 percent of those surveyed supported […]
Maryland Senate passes bill to limit septic systems
ANNAPOLIS — After days of delay and maneuvers that frustrated opponents and supporters alike, Maryland senators have approved a bill to regulate where new residential septic systems can be installed. The legislation, passed by a 32-14 vote Tuesday afternoon, creates a four-tiered system that counties are expected to use to limit where residential septic systems […]
Chesapeake Bay Foundation: Maryland plan underfunded
Maryland’s bay restoration strategy is underfunded and may not get the job done as promised, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation said Tuesday. Alison Prost, the foundation’s Maryland executive director, said Maryland is more than halfway to its bay restoration goals, but said lawmakers must provide more money and make policy changes “or we risk further disappointment […]
Highway bill fails to clear hurdle in U.S. Senate
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers are under pressure to find a way to keep federal aid flowing to highway and transit programs beyond the end of this month after a transportation bill failed to clear a procedural hurdle in the Senate. The government’s power to spend federal Highway Trust Fund money on transportation programs and to levy […]
