Call to Action: Comment on the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement Draft

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The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recently send out a call to action on the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement to review the work plans and comment on the actions outlined in the existing drafts via the Chesapeake Bay program’s website.

From the announcement:

On June 16, 2014, the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement was signed. Signatories include representatives from the entire watershed, committing for the first time the bay’s headwater states to a full partnership in the Bay Program.

What steps has the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, along with bay partners, taken since June 2014? Here are a couple of important ones:

Goal Implementation Teams spent a year developing management strategies that outline how Maryland will accomplish the outcomes and how Maryland will monitor, assess and report progress. These strategies were released on July 23, 2015.

Next, partners began working on 28 specific two-year work plans for each strategy that identify responsible partners for each step, action items, timelines, associated costs and possible funding opportunities.

On January 22, 2016, the work plan drafts entered a 45-day public comment period. As such, they encourage you to review the work plans and comment on the actions outlined in the existing drafts via the Chesapeake Bay Program’s website.

Maryland is looking for even more…

Maryland recognizes that the current draft work plans are comprised of initiatives and actions, however, they also understand that they may be missing information from key partners and their efforts.

Are you executing a new environmental education initiative in your organization? Have you set measures to increase the diversity of your business? Let DNR know! Fill out this form and telling who you are, what you represent, and efforts you would like to add to the work plan.

For more information, please contact Chris Becraft at 410.260.8734 or via email at christopher.becraft@maryland.gov.

Maryland is committed to meeting the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement’s goals by or before 2025. To do so, DNR will need the support of all of its partners. Please consider helping the state meet and exceed their goals to enhance and restore the bay.

Please view the video below to learn 5 Things You May Not Know About the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement.