According to a  report released by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, restoration efforts would  not only create new employment opportunities, but also generate millions of dollars in income and increase property values.  The Baltimore Sun reports: Even in its degraded condition, the bay still is a significant job and income generator, the report says.  Though the seafood industry is a shadow of its historic self, it still employed about 11,000 people in Maryland who earned $150 million in 2008. …

An article in the November Edition of the Chesapeake Bay Journal describes the opposing viewpoints and concerns generated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) draft Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for the Chesapeake Bay. At public meetings and in written comments, citizens and organizations from across the watershed - and across the nation - are staking out positions regarding the draft Bay cleanup plan released by the EPA Sept. 24. Many environmentalists have praised the plan,…

More jobs may be coming to Maryland following Monday's announcement from the Federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement that  developers are being sought out to construct offshore wind turbines in Ocean City.    The O'Malley Administration, which has conducted two years of research on the economic and environmental impacts of  renewable wind energy, has been working with federal officials on leasing opportunities.  The Gazette reports: The proposed 175,000-acre-plus site starts about 10 nautical miles off Ocean City,…

MACo submitted comments on the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) draft Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) and Maryland's draft Phase I Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) on November 8.  In its comments, MACo stressed the need for local flexibility, quantifiable nutrient reduction tools that have been subjected to a cost based analysis, and both technical and financial assistance.  The final versions of the TMDL and the Phase I WIP are expected to be finished by December 31. In…

An October 29 Baltimore Sun article describes the recent action undertaken by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to fine three Maryland jurisdictions for stormwater runoff violations. The Environmental Protection Agency has levied nearly $250,000 in fines against Baltimore City and Anne Arundel and Harford counties for failing to adequately protect their waterways from pollution washing off streets, parking lots and lawns. ... The EPA's Mid-Atlantic regional office in Philadelphia proposed fining the three local governments more than…

An October 30 Gazette.net article recounts a recent briefing by State officials to the Maryland Chamber of Commerce concerning total maximum daily load (TMDL) implementation efforts.  Maryland was the only jurisdiction of the seven within the bay's watershed to submit a "watershed implementation plan" to the Environmental Protection Agency by the Sept. 1 deadline that met statewide limits for nitrogen, phosphorous and sediment pollution, although some river basins still exceeded their individual allocations. ... "We all have…