Press Release

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) mourns the loss of Dr. Beth McGee, CBF’s Director of Science and Agricultural Policy. Since coming to CBF in 2003, Beth played a crucial role in assessing the health of the Bay, leading the science of Bay restoration, and helping CBF craft policy solutions. 

A scientist at heart, she had a unique ability to translate her knowledge into terms that were easy to understand, and she enjoyed her role advising other Bay scientists and communicating the Bay’s challenges and solutions to the public and elected officials.

Just as important as her ability to make complex science easier to understand was her ability to shape and affect policy. To achieve environmental change, she believed, science must support policy decisions. Then those policies need to become legislation or regulations that are effective. Over the last 20 years, she helped achieve those goals.

Dr. McGee had a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Virginia, a Master’s degree in Ecology from the University of Delaware, and a Ph.D. in Environmental Science from the University of Maryland. She once said, “Find your passion, make it your job, and you’ll never work another day in your life!” 

Alison Prost, CBF Vice President for Environmental Protection and Restoration, offered these thoughts.

“The Chesapeake Bay lost a giant today. Although small in stature, few have contributed as much to the science and policy of Bay restoration as Dr. Beth McGee. Her love and connection to the watershed and the Bay drove her. And her intellect never let her settle for the status quo. When Beth talked, the Bay restoration community listened and acted on her advice. 

“Beth was dedicated to science and the facts, and was always open to new research and ideas. Her colleagues, both inside and outside of CBF, were the beneficiaries of her knowledge, kindness, and sense of humor.” 

Thousands of volunteers across Virginia picked up about 100,000 pounds of litter Saturday as part of Clean the Bay Day, a Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) annual event and Virginia’s largest and longest-running litter and shoreline cleanup.

On June 3, more than 3,000 volunteers gathered at about 200 sites in Richmond, Hampton Roads, the Eastern Shore, Northern Virginia, the Shenandoah Valley, and at Virginia State Parks. While numbers are still being reported and likely to increase, preliminary totals show at least 97,795 pounds of litter and debris were removed from beaches, parks, shorelines, streams, rivers, and lakes spanning an estimated 314 miles. In addition to those numbers, 841 members of the military and volunteers in recent weeks have removed 10,305 pounds of litter as part of Clean the Bay Day.

“It’s wonderful to see how this iconic event brings people together to make a positive impact in their communities. Parks, beaches, and waterways across Virginia are cleaner now thanks to the work of thousands of volunteers,” said CBF Grassroots Coordinator Lisa Renée Jennings. “These cumulative efforts contribute to healthier rivers and streams, and a cleaner Chesapeake Bay.”

As usual, the most common items found during this year’s cleanup were plastic and glass bottles, aluminum cans, plastic bags, and cigarette butts. But volunteers recovered many larger items, including a treadmill, a tractor tire, a toilet, a railroad tie, a mattress, a lounge chair, a countertop, an oven door, a car bumper, and a big leather office chair.

Participants also recovered many unusual items, including an immersive survival suit, a mini dirt bike, a ship’s bumper, one plastic hippopotamus, a wooden duck blind, a terracotta pipe, rubber hose, a kitchen sink, a kindle, a “just married” flag, and a $10 bill.

Among the volunteers were many elected officials, other community leaders, service members, Scout groups, small businesses, large corporations, and thousands of other Virginians. Since 1989, Clean the Bay Day has engaged hundreds of thousands of volunteers who have removed millions of pounds of debris across Virginia.

The local community is invited to learn more about the Marsh Creek Watershed and plans to restore and protect it at a free public event in Centre County, Pennsylvania, on Thursday, June 8.

“Envision Marsh Creek” will take place from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Bald Eagle State Park Environmental Learning Center, 149 Main Park Road, Howard, PA.

In addition to details about plans coming together to improve streams within the 44 square-mile watershed, there will be group discussions, questions and answers, free native plant seeds and fishing kits while supplies last, and refreshments. The public will also meet and hear from the Marsh Creek Conservation Partners behind the project.

A watershed-wide restoration and protection plan for the 88 miles of Little Marsh and Marsh Creeks is being coordinated with public and partner input with collaboration by Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) Watershed Coordinator Caitlin Glagola.

The goal is to improve the health of the creeks. Some segments do not meet water quality standards because of excess sediment. Although the presence of sediment in streams is natural, excess sediment entering waterways from human disturbance can degrade habitat and food sources for aquatic life.

Glagola also coordinated with a group of partners to develop a restoration plan for the Halfmoon Creek Watershed that became eligible for federal funding after being approved by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and Environmental Protection Agency.

“In Marsh Creek we are finding that fishing is a literal hook for recreation, so the community is interested in work centering around building and enhancing aquatic habitat,” Glagola said.

Glagola added that community conversations are key to success at Marsh Creek. “We want to make sure that whatever we put into the plan is something that the community is behind, that they support and agree with,” she said. “Science can tell you one way to do it, but blending science with local knowledge and values are what is going to be successful.”

The entrance to the Environmental Learning Center is located near the lower parking lot accessible from Marina Road. After entering the park, proceed to the first intersection and make a right turn onto Marina Road and then take the first right turn into the parking lot.

Partners to be at the event on June 8 include CBF, Centre County Conservation District, Trout Unlimited, Penn State Extension, U.S. Youth Fly Fishing Team, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission, Bald Eagle Paddlers, Chesapeake Conservancy, and Herbert, Rowland & Grubic, Inc.

There’s still time to get tickets to attend Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s (CBF) Bands in the Sand beach concert, the waterfront party of the year that helps CBF fund its Bay-saving mission.

Each summer 1,600 guests gather on the shores of the Bay to dance the night away to the music performed by top live bands while enjoying all-you-can-eat food and drink.

General admission tickets for the June 10 event are on sale for $200 each. It takes place from 5:30 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, June 10 at the Philip Merrill Environmental Center, which is at 6 Herndon Ave. in Annapolis.

This year’s event features the bands The Last Revel, Misspent Youth, and Jah Works as well as some of the best local food and drink from Annapolis-area restaurants The Choptank, Boatyard Bar & Grill, and Caliente Grill.

Bands in the Sand is important to CBF’s mission to Save the Bay. Thanks to the support of sponsors and attendees, CBF has raised over $4 million from this event in previous years to help fund our organizations’ education, restoration, and advocacy efforts.

Each general admission ticket also includes a tax-deductible donation of $100.

Tickets can be purchased through the CBF website. The event has typically sold out in the past, so we encourage people who want to attend to purchase tickets online.

Following an emergency action setting new limits on the striped bass fishery, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is holding four virtual hearings this month to seek input from the public. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) urges those who care about striped bass and the health of the Chesapeake Bay to make their voices heard. 

While striped bass struggle to recover from a dramatic decline, recreational fishing pressure on striped bass along the Atlantic Coast in 2022 was nearly double that of previous years. On May 2, the ASMFC voted to implement an emergency action to decrease the maximum size limit for most striped bass fisheries to 31 inches. The ASMFC also voted to initiate a new Addendum intended to reduce mortality in both the recreational and commercial fisheries by considering changes to recreational size limits, season closures, and maximum size limits.

CBF supports these actions by ASMFC to aid the comeback of this iconic fishery. The ASMFC virtual public hearings will be held via webinar at the following times:

• Wednesday, May 17, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.;
• Monday, May 22, from   6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.;
• Tuesday, May 23, from   5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., and; 
• Wednesday, May 31, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Registration is available at this link, and more information is at this ASMFC press release.   

CBF Senior Regional Ecosystem Scientist Chris Moore issued the following statement. 

“We are at a pivotal point that will determine the future of striped bass in the Chesapeake Bay and along the Atlantic Coast. Just as the striped bass population struggles to recover, recreational fishing pressure is increasing. Considering the increase in recreational fishing over the past several years and high reported catches, especially by New England anglers, these numbers point to a need to move in a more conservative direction. 

“Everybody with a stake in a healthy striped bass fishery should attend these ASMFC public hearings and speak in favor of continued decisive action to protect and rebuild the striped bass population.”

In a win for forest protections and clean water, a Harford County judge today ruled in favor of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) in a lawsuit against a developer that was proposing to clear about 220 acres of forest, including 49 large and ecologically valuable trees, to build warehouses.

Judge Diane Adkins-Tobin found that neither Harford County nor the developer, BTC II I-95 Logistics Center LLC and Harford Investors LLP, provided a factual basis for granting the developer a waiver from the requirements of Maryland’s Forest Conservation Act to clear the forested land known locally as Abingdon Woods.

The law requires that developers preserve large and mature trees, known as specimen trees, and forested land, unless preservation would deprive the property owners of rights “commonly enjoyed by others.” If so, a property owner could request a waiver from the forest protection requirements and the county could evaluate that request. In this case, the judge found that Harford County never provided any factual basis as to how the developer would be deprived of their property rights by following forest retention requirements in state law.

Judge Adkins-Tobin ruled that Harford County must now review its previous findings and, if it can, provide facts as to why the county granted the developer the waiver from the Forest Conservation Act requirements. The ruling sends a message to jurisdictions and developers in Maryland that boilerplate language granting variances to sidestep Forest Conservation Act requirements is unlawful.

CBF has been pursuing this case through the different levels of Maryland’s judicial system since first bringing the lawsuit in 2019. In 2022, CBF secured a landmark ruling from Maryland’s Supreme Court that found forest conservation plans for development projects can be legally challenged after being approved. Prior to that ruling, citizens interested in challenging forest conservation plans had to wait until the full site plan for a project was approved. That ruling along with the one made today should give citizens more power to quickly challenge deficient planning department decisions that give developers the ability to sidestep state forest protections.

CBF also secured a halt and then an injunction to stop tree clearing at the Abingdon Woods site in Sept. 2022 after the developer began clearing trees at the site in July. More than half of the specimen trees were cleared after the county granted a grading permit for the site even though this lawsuit was moving through the court system. CBF secured the halt and later the injunction after the Maryland Supreme Court ruling was issued in late August. CBF’s immediate attempt to stop the cutting in July was unsuccessful in court until the Maryland Supreme Court ruling was released. It’s now unclear how the county can make the case that the trees should or should not be removed when many have already been cleared.

CBF’s Director of Litigation Paul Smail issued the following statement in response to the ruling: 

“This is a major victory for citizens to ensure that the Forest Conservation Act in Maryland can be used to protect forested land from unceasing encroachment by developers. The judge’s ruling sends a message to counties and developers that there must be a clear factual basis for granting waivers from the state’s requirements to protect forested land.  

“Most developers won’t suffer hardship by preserving forests and large trees that benefit residents’ physical and mental health, the enjoyment of their property, and improve water quality. That’s why we’re urging government agencies to follow the law, do the research and analysis, and if they must grant a waiver to a developer, make sure they provide a factual basis and required findings as to why this benefit was provided to the developer and not to other property owners. 

“In this specific case, we remain concerned that the developer cleared many of the specimen trees that the Forest Conservation Act would have protected had the law been followed. Those trees were cleared while this case was being adjudicated, despite attempts by CBF to halt the destruction. We’re now evaluating what options we may have to correct this wrong.” 

A new report from the Chesapeake Bay Program’s Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee evaluates why progress to restore local rivers, streams, and the Chesapeake Bay has been slower than expected and looks at ways to accelerate efforts to reduce pollution.

The report, titled A Comprehensive Evaluation of System Response, identified both challenges and opportunities for change. The challenges noted include:

• Bay water quality standards were met in 27 percent of Bay waters in 1985, improving only to the mid-30 percent range in 2020.
• Non-point source implementation is not happening fast enough and is less effective than expected.
• Tens of millions of pounds of nitrogen reductions are needed to achieve the goal, but a decade of implementation has produced only 3.5 million pounds of nonpoint-source nitrogen reductions.
• Complete attainment of water quality standards remains in the distant future.
• There is significant uncertainty about historic non-point source management efforts including the benefits, how these efforts influence behavior, and whether they are implemented as prescribed.
• Current programs have failed to implement highly effective practices, such as forested buffers, at the rate needed.
• Implementation of agricultural best management practices is not producing the reductions expected (response gaps) particularly for phosphorous. Contributing factors could include:
  • Ground water lag times,
  • That practices and programs are not as effective as expected, and
  • That there is incomplete understanding of how nitrogen and phosphorus, particularly from manure, are used on the landscape.

The report also cited these opportunities for change:

• Improvements are possible but fundamental changes in our incentive programs and policies are needed.
• Better target funding to areas generating the most pollution.
• Shift metrics from simply installing practices to achieving pollution-reduction outcomes.
• Because there are limits to voluntary adoption, new and refined requirements and approaches may be necessary.
• Expand the focus of monitoring from attainment to better understanding water quality responses to pollution reduction.
• Expand the focus from solely reducing pollution to improvements in living resources. For instance, practices such as living shorelines have substantial habitat benefits that are not captured by water quality assessments alone.
• Refine the Bay Program’s adaptive management tools to address its limited capacity to evaluate uncertainties and response gaps.

Following the release of the report, Chesapeake Bay Foundation President Hilary Harp Falk issued this statement.

“Since the first Bay Agreement was signed 40 years ago, following the science has been at the heart of restoration efforts. This latest scientific report highlights the enormity of the challenges we still face while providing incredible insight into where we might refocus our efforts. It should be required reading for everyone in the Bay movement. 

“As we face a third missed deadline, it’s time to take a hard look in the mirror and realize that we cannot rely on more money alone to meet the goals. While additional investment is still needed, we must drastically change and accelerate our approach to reducing the pollution running off the land.  

“We can still leave clean water to the next generation, but only if Bay leaders listen to the science, target efforts more strategically, and begin paying for the outcomes that matter most to local communities and the Bay downstream. This is a time for bold leadership from the entire Bay Partnership.” 

A free field day in Lancaster County on Saturday, May 13, is an opportunity to learn about the Upper Conestoga River and a restoration plan to clean and protect it.

“Experience the Upper Conestoga: Connecting with our river,” will take place from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Historic Poole Forge at 1940 Main St., in Narvon. Along with details about a restoration plan being written to improve waters within the 61 square-mile watershed there will be activities for the whole family.

Demonstrations at the event will include stream restoration projects (Stroud Water Research Center), pollinator gardens (Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay), stream ecology (Susquehanna River Basin Commission), fly casting (Donegal Trout Unlimited), kayaking (Conestoga River Club), tree giveaways (Keystone 10 Million Trees Partnership), and raptor rehabilitation (Raven Ridge Rescue).

“For a lot of people, the Upper Conestoga River is there, but not something they engage or interact with,” said Brian Gish, Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) Watershed Coordinator. “This event is to give the river more of a real presence in their lives.”

The Upper Conestoga River does not meet water quality standards and Gish said the goal of the restoration plan is incremental progress toward cleaner waters that people can enjoy. “The plan focuses on aquatic life, as it really struggles there,” Gish said. “The goal is to make the waterways and farms work in harmony.”

The watershed restoration plan is being coordinated by Gish and partners. Gish coordinated a restoration plan for the Pequea Creek Watershed that last year became eligible for federal funding. 

Gish said that community understanding and input to the restoration plan are key to a healthier river and the reason for the field day on May 13. “For us at CBF we could say a million things should be done. But at the end of the day, this is their river, and the choices are theirs to make,” Gish said. “We need to find solutions that work for them and ways that serve their broader needs, not just those of the river. No plan is going to work unless the community feels a sense of ownership.”

Parking is available on-site. Limited shuttle service will be available within the watershed on a first-come, first-served basis. Shuttle service must be scheduled prior to the day of the event and can be done by calling 717-200-4529.

Chesapeake Bay Foundation staff and volunteers worked with several different farmers and organizations this spring to plant about 6,400 trees at four sites along headwater streams in Maryland. 

Each planting was designed to add tree and shrub buffers along waterways to improve downstream water quality, filter air, and improve fish and wildlife habitat. As the riparian buffers grow, their roots and stems will also sequester carbon while their canopies shade the streambed, which helps mitigate the harmful effects of climate change. 

In Maryland, runoff from agricultural activities is the leading source of nitrogen and phosphorus in waterways. These primary Chesapeake Bay pollutants fuel harmful algal blooms. Tree plantings along streams are among the most cost-effective natural solutions to reduce this pollution and restore the Bay. 

“We had another great planting season this spring,” said Rob Schnabel, CBF’s Maryland Restoration Scientist. “The new trees and shrubs along these tributary streams will help build a defensive barrier against pollution from entering fragile headwaters. Downstream water quality will improve by filtering out pollutants upstream. We’re grateful to the farmers and hundreds of volunteers who helped us plant this spring and we’re already starting to gear up for our fall planting schedule.” 

The largest planting this spring took place at the REED Center for Ecosystem Reintegration in Frederick County where volunteers planted about 3,000 trees and plants to create a food forest on April 21 and 22 in honor of Earth Day. Almost all of these trees and plants will produce seeds, fruit, or nuts for people and wildlife. Varieties included grape vines, hazelnut trees, blueberry shrubs, black locust trees, mulberries, and persimmons. More than 200 volunteers planted the trees along a tributary to Catoctin Creek, which flows to the Potomac River, during the two-day event. The largest volunteer group that day was from ReNew White Marsh in Nottingham, which had about 50 people attend to help complete the work. 

“This was the most volunteers we’ve ever had come out to help us,” said REED Center Director Benjamin Friton at the planting on April 21. “We’re transitioning a 150-acre farm into a diverse food forest. We estimate we can produce about 40 times the food per acre than a standard monoculture field. That helps us diversify our farm products and protects our business from inclement events such as poor weather years or disease. We also don’t need to irrigate or use pesticides to produce crops, which is an additional environmental benefit that helps us reduce costs. Thanks to all the volunteers who have helped us plant the seedlings to turn our vision into a reality.”   

In Washington County, CBF organized a March 26 planting at Pathfinder Farm Distillery in Rohrsville where approximately 50 volunteers planted about 630 trees along a tributary to Antietam Creek. The distillery grows many of the ingredients used in its products on-site.  

For this planting, the farmer was among the first to take advantage of Maryland Department of Agriculture’s conservation buffer initiative to plant trees. Farmers can enroll in the program to receive $5,000 per acre of new forest buffer plus maintenance fees for five years. This planting was completed in partnership with the Maryland Forest Service. It continued CBF’s long history of adding trees in the Antietam watershed, where CBF has worked since 2002 to improve streams and fish and wildlife habitat. 

On April 1, CBF and volunteers partnered with the state’s Department of Natural Resources to add 1,400 trees across seven acres of land at the Merkle Wildlife Sanctuary in Upper Marlboro. About 80 volunteers worked through rainy conditions to plant the new forest buffer near the Patuxent River. Maryland’s Veteran Conservation Corps pitched in by pre-augering holes to make the planting more efficient. The new trees will help DNR reduce the amount of mowing maintenance at the sanctuary while also providing soil and water quality benefits. 

The fourth planting took place April 15 in Frederick County, where CBF and about 90 volunteers planted about 1,400 trees and shrubs along a tributary to Catoctin Creek in the Potomac River watershed. In total, volunteers added two miles of hedge rows, six acres of forest buffer, and two acres of wetlands on a farm near Jefferson, Maryland. The planting helped extend the forest buffer along the stream that CBF planted at an adjoining farm last year. The stream buffer is now about a mile and a half long. 

“It’s ideal when you can get a long stretch of contiguous forest buffer like this one,” said Schnabel. “In this case, the farmer talked to his neighbor about our previous work next door and then we worked with them to extend the buffer. The hedge rows are also a great regenerative agriculture practice to help reduce agricultural runoff because they can catch water as it flows off farm fields, improve the soil’s ability to soak up water and reducing flooding, as well as create wildlife and pollinator habitat.” 

Most of the trees planted this spring were grown from seedlings at CBF’s Clagett Farm in Prince George’s County. The volunteer plantings were supported by funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and WGL Energy, which offers customers the ability to offset their natural gas use with tree plantings through its carbon offset programs. 

5-Million Milestone Reached Last Fall

The 2023 planting seasons will be the most ambitious yet for the Keystone 10 Million Trees Partnership, to directly fund and plant over 300,000 new trees for Pennsylvania this spring and add another 200,000 in the fall.

The effort reached its midpoint milestone last October when the 5 millionth tree was planted at Furnace Run Park in Franklin County.

Since it launched 2018, the partnership, coordinated by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, has grown to nearly 300 partners. New partnership manager Joe Hallinan is confident that reaching the 10-million tree goal by 2025 is achievable. “With the commitment shown by our partners, both new and old, I’d like to believe we can exceed that,” Hallinan said.

The 2023 campaign got into full swing in late March, with a massive delivery of trees and shrubs at Lancaster Farm and Home. In mid-April, approximately 14,000 trees were planted at the former sand quarries at Furnace Run Park. Earth Day and Arbor Day observances in April are also prime times for tree plantings throughout the Commonwealth.

Roughly 28,000 miles of Pennsylvania’s rivers and streams are damaged by polluted runoff and the legacy of coal mining. Trees are the most cost-effective tools for cleaning and protecting waterways. Trees filter and absorb polluted runoff, stabilize streambanks, and improve soil quality. Trees also help address climate change by cooling the air and sequestering carbon.

“We often don’t think about the positive effects that trees have on a community, local economies, and the physical and mental health of our residents,” Hallinan said. “Students learn better, patients heal faster, and our minds are less anxious when we have access to outdoor green space.”

The Commonwealth’s Clean Water Blueprint calls for about 95,000 acres of forested buffers to be planted in Pennsylvania’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Adding 10 million new trees alongside streams, streets, and other priority landscapes would accelerate the Keystone State toward its clean water goals, achieving as much as two-thirds of the forested buffer goal.

The partnership is placing special emphasis on plantings in Lancaster County and four other counties in southcentral Pennsylvania. Those counties are critical because of the amount of nitrogen pollution generated. Those counties are also where the greatest need meets greatest opportunity, both to improve local stream health and reverse the overall loss of trees. 

“The trees are one of the biggest bangs for the buck for cleaning water, but I think they are even bigger in a sense of how we can look at how we interact with our natural world,” Hallinan said. “By planting trees today, we can leave our communities a better place for our children and grandchildren.” 

To learn more about the Keystone 10 Million Trees Partnership visit www.TenMillionTrees.org.