Wednesday, November 16 9:00 am. to 3:00 pm.

Capitol Hill United Methodist Church, 421 Seward Square SE , (Pennsylvania Ave. and 5th St.)

Washington DC

Speakers will include:

Dottie Yunger, Executive Director, Chesapeake Covenant Community

Dr. Beth Norcross, Writer and Speaker, Adjunct faculty in eco-theology at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C,, Director of the Green Seminary Initiative.

Other presenters will include:

Anacostia Watershed Society • Groundworks Anacostia River DC • Patuxent Riverkeeper • Sierra, Club Environmental Justice & Community Partnerships • Washington City Church of the Brethren • DC Environmental Health Collaborative

Opportunities for learning, listening, reflecting, meeting, conversing, growing. Listening sessions will include the following topics: sustainability, public health, stewardship, environmental justice, water/sense of place, advocacy/witness.

All comers are welcome. Advance registration is encouraged, to help with planning. On site registration also available.

REGISTER at www.chesapeakecovenant.org

The voice of the Spirit… The Voice of Scripture… The Voice of the Community… The Voice of Science…The Voice of the River

November 5th, 5:30 pm – midnight
Riverkeeper office: 18600 Queen Anne Road; Upper Marlboro, MD 20774

Fairhaven School: 17800 Queen Anne Road; Upper Marlboro, MD 20774

Come party under the stars on one of our county’s few remaining working farms with four non-profit groups that stand together for change, community and sustainability: Patuxent Riverkeeper, Prince George’s Sierra Club, Eco-City Farms and Fairhaven School.

Pre-Party Meeting: It can never be all play and no work: Sierra Club is having a general membership meeting at 3:30 pm before the evening party. The meeting will be at Fairhaven School: 17800 Queen Anne Road, Upper Marlboro, MD 20774

Film at Fairhaven: The film du jour is “Pig Business” a documentary the business practices of global agri-business in Europe (and here) that destroy local agriculture, while polluting the air and water. The movie will start at 6:00.

Beer and Dine: After the movie we will head back to the farm (appr. 7:00) where we will be grilling all natural sausage.  Bring a dish to share along with your plate, utensils, your favorite beverage and a folding chair. Spirit provided courtesy of Killarney House Restaurant

Tunes: Bring a musical instrument if you want to jam with the group.

Kayak Auction:  Riverkeeper will be auction off four of our used kayaks this Fall. The on-line auctions are listed on EBAY and end on November 9, 2010

Follow these links for more information on how to bid on kayaks:

Dirigo 140:

Tandem Kayak:

Dirigo 106:

Dirigo 140:

Landmark Decision Sets Statewide Precedent for Maryland Citizen Groups

OCTOBER 2, 2011 (UPPER MARLBORO, MD) — In a recent 5-2 decision, Maryland’s highest court upheld judicial standing for a member of a local environmental group contesting a wetlands permit awarded to developers of a shopping mall. The case— “Patuxent Riverkeeper v. Maryland Department of the Environment” — is the first test of a rule passed by the Maryland General Assembly in 2010 concerning standing (i.e., the  right to initiate a lawsuit) for citizen and organizations in state courts.

The non-profit group claimed victory in the case of a controversial and contested state-issued wetland permit located at Woodmore Town Centre shopping mall in Prince George’s County. Patuxent Riverkeeper initiated the lawsuit on behalf of David Linthicum, a Riverkeeper member since 2004. The plaintiff was concerned about adverse environmental effects of a road crossing that disrupted the river flow upstream of his commercial and recreational interests.

“Although this historic decision does not guarantee that everybody who wants to challenge a state permit can get standing, it will at least eliminate many of the frustrating  loopholes our adversaries have exploited to deny us a day in court, “ states Patuxent Riverkeeper Fred Tutman. “Most important, our victory creates a climate where the state and the pemittees will labor to write much better permits in order avoid legitimate challenges.”

As a case of first impression in Maryland, this decision by the Maryland Court of Appeals sets forth refreshed tests to be used in all state courts to determine standing for would-be plaintiffs. Although courts have the authority to weigh a variety of factors top determine who has standing, this case provides landmark guidance in several areas  by clarifying that

• the court is to look at adverse effects to the plaintiff’s interest in the affected water body instead of actual injury to that water body,
• the court’s authority is to consider aesthetic and recreational interests asserted by the plaintiff as  bona fide for the purposes of determining standing.

Woodmore Town Center, located in Prince George’s next to the Capitol Beltway, is a 247-acre mixed use development. The developers sought a non-tidal wetlands permit to permanently disturb less than an acre of marshland to build a bridge or box culvert access road from State Route #202 in Glenarden . The access road of this development crosses a headwaters stream on Western Branch of the Patuxent River.

Patuxent Riverkeeper offered comments and the later challenged the permit in circuit court,  where it was denied standing to pursue the case based on its member, Linthicum. Unable to get standing to put the concerns raised by its member before a trial judge, Riverkeeper petitioned the Maryland Court of Appeals, which granted certiorari and heard oral arguments in the case in June of 2011.

Linthicum, who lives on the banks of the Patuxent River, frequently paddles downstream of the affected site, draws and sells tourism maps of the Patuxent and its tributaries and is closely involved with stewardship for the river.

“Citizens and community groups frequently encounter barriers to standing as one of the greatest impediments for obtaining justice for their environmental concerns,“  according to Tutman.  “Opponents often raise concerns about the reasonableness of environmentalist claims, whether they are directly affected or injured by the construction projects, too far downstream, within sight and sound or adjacent to the offending projects and a host of other roadblocks usually designed to dispose of environmental cases before they can be tried on their merits.”

Prior to 2010 rules change, state permit challenges were tried in agency-run administrative proceedings.   Citizen interests and organizations on their own typically could not get standing. The 2010 changes in standing  aimed to make it easier for citizens to appeal permit challenges directly to the circuit courts.

About Patuxent Riverkeeper: The sole purpose of the Patuxent Riverkeeper is to protect, restore, and advocate for clean water in the Patuxent River and its connected ecosystem. The Riverkeeper patrols the river, investigates and resolves water quality and pollution complaints, launches and manages restoration projects, raises awareness about the river and its problems and work toward better enforcement of current laws and better laws to protect the river. The group is a nonprofit watershed advocacy organization affiliated with the Waterkeeper Alliance in New York, an umbrella group that licenses and links Waterkeepers internationally.

About the Patuxent River: The Patuxent River drainage area covers 930 square miles overall and runs north to south for 110 linear miles through seven Maryland counties, terminating at the Chesapeake Bay. The Patuxent is the longest and deepest intrastate river in Maryland, ranging from ankle wading depths, down to more than 180 feet.

For more information contact:

Frederick L. Tutman

Patuxent Riverkeeper

301-249-8200, ext. 7

Fred@paxriverkeeper.org

www.paxriverkeeper.org

Date: Monday, September 12, 2011,Time: 6:30pm,Location: Anacostia Watershed Society,4302 Baltimore Ave

Bladensburg, MD 20710 Description: On Monday, September 12, 2011, the Prince George’s Clean Water Coalition will hold a kickoff meeting to connect with other county activists regarding campaign efforts for clean water in the county.

This summer the water is so bad, it’s making people sick.

Have you gone in the water this summer? There are recent reports of people and pets contracting serious infections from swimming in the rivers and streams that flow into the Chesapeake Bay. In addition, scientist say the Bay’s “dead zone,” a large area of very low oxygen caused by excess pollution, is one of the largest ever. And what about flooded streets and basements when it rains heavily, a big problem in much of the Anacostia region of Prince George’s County?

These are all signs of a deteriorating system that is supposed to keep the water clean. Sewage treatment plant operators are not making upgrade deadlines for their facilities. Run-off from storms flows right into our waterways carrying tons of pollution and sediment. Failing septic systems pumps hundreds of pounds of poisonous nitrogen into the ground water every day. Something has to give or we will all be living with the legacy of inaction and poisoned waters.

The Clean Waters, Healthy Families Campaign has four goals to help clean our waters and ensure the long term health of our rivers, streams and the Bay:

• Provide sufficient funding to ensure “major” Wastewater Treatment Plants are upgraded on schedule
• Ensure an ongoing dedicated funding source to local governments that allows them to address stormwater treatment needs
• Create policy that discourages sprawling growth
• Require a treatment standard for all wastewater treatment systems (including septic systems) to meet Maryland‟s water quality standards

Maryland has developed a plan to clean its rivers, reservoirs and the Bay by 2020. Not surprisingly, some of the biggest polluters are doing everything they can to prevent the plan from moving forward – from lawsuits, to exaggerated costs estimates, to fear mongering about the loss of jobs and businesses. It seems these groups won’t be happy until our basements are flooded after a hard rain, our waters are the color of coffee and their pockets full of cash – at our expense. Today we have a choice – to follow the scientifically based plan to clean our waters or allow the polluters to have their way.

Dirty water can cause serious infections. Dirty water harms the economy. Dirty water costs jobs – thousands of them.

It’s our choice – live with dirty water, consider “No Swimming” signs the norm and pay the price in the years ahead, or make clean water a priority and protect and invest in it as you would a child, and keep it healthy. Cleaning up our waters will also green our communities, which improves quality of life, makes communities and people healthier, and raises property values.

Thank you for joining us!

Brent Bolin, Anacostia Watershed Society
Fred Tutman, Patuxent Riverkeeper
Victor Ukpolo, Clean Water Action

Annapolis, MD May 19, 2011 – A flotilla of small craft landed at the City Dock in Annapolis on Thursday, bringing with them citizen groups demanding that Maryland state legislators deliver leadership, action and results on the cleanup of the state’s major rivers and coasts, and Chesapeake Bay.

Eighteen affiliated Chesapeake Waterkeeper groups, made up of concerned citizens, including farmers, watermen, business owners and families from throughout the Chesapeake Bay region, charged that the state legislature had deferred critical environmental work and failed to address the state’s mounting water pollution problems.

“At a time when the need for environmental leadership has never been greater, Marylanders were forced to suffer through a ‘do-nothing’ state legislature,” said Fred Tutman, the Patuxent Riverkeeper. “All of us have a responsibility not to let history repeat itself.”

“Today, we are calling on the Statehouse and on the public to re-focus and re-energize and address the environmental problems that threaten the long term sustainability of our environment and our way of life,” said Kathy Phillips, Assateague Coastkeeper. “With the clock ticking and water quality rapidly declining, the lost economic value, jobs and quality of life present real suffering for people and communities.”

Unsatisfied with the inaction of the most recent General Assembly, the flotilla arrived at City Dock at 1:00 p.m to insist that lawmakers make good on campaign promises to clean up our waterways. Concerned Marylanders joined the Waterkeepers at the event, demanding that elected leaders act during the next session. The flotilla was comprised of Waterkeepers and their boats, a symbol of the ever-vigilant presence that Waterkeepers provide throughout their individual watersheds.

“Waterkeepers and the people of Maryland whom we represent decry our State Legislature’s failure to live up to promises made by its constituent lawmakers,” said Drew Koslow, The Choptank Riverkeeper. “Maryland sets the tone for Chesapeake Bay cleanup, and so Maryland’s inaction calls into serious question the credibility and sincerity of our elected officials, particularly because it will now be much more difficult for Maryland to meet the Bay Pollution Diet set by EPA for the Bay States.”

Thursday’s protesters are concerned in particular with the Chesapeake Bay, which is in precipitous decline, with increasing dead zones. Few if any of the rivers and creeks draining into the bay have managed to achieve a scorecard grade that rises above a “D” from the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Studies. The Maryland Coastal Bays Program, an EPA National Estuary Program, has not been able to issue a grade above “C+” for the Coastal Bays on the Eastern Shore. The Legislature is tasked with passing laws that curb pollution from sources such as pesticides, agricultural runoff including arsenic in chicken manure, natural gas fracking, plastic bags, problems associated with smart growth, and the increasing problem of stormwater runoff.

“The District of Columbia is doing its part to control plastic bags in the river by passing a Bag Bill,” said Dottie Yunger, the Anacostia Riverkeeper. “With eighty percent of the Anacostia Watershed in Maryland, what will it take to get Maryland to do its part? We will never get a healthy Bay until all local jurisdictions take action.”

Waterkeepers are local grassroots clean water advocacy organizations made up of concerned citizens and local residents. One of the most important bodies of water in the US from the standpoint of economics and diversity of life, Chesapeake Bay has a concentration of Waterkeepers, most of whom patrol a tributary that drains into the bay. The local Waterkeeper movement features people working in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia, and has emerged as the eyes, ears and voices of waterways and communities that are struggling to turn the tide of the continuing decline of the waters they patrol.

“In the end, this is not about whether our elected officials have a good environmental score card or whether they have great intentions for the environment, but instead whether or not they have the political will to bring about a new and better day for the Chesapeake and Coastal Bays,” said Carolyn Lott, a member of the Assateague Coastal Trust. “Our waterways are screaming out loud that they are dying. Our local Waterkeepers will continue to be the voice for our waterways and our communities.”

You can hear audio clips from the press conference by clicking on the following programs:

The Waterkeepers Chesapeake include: Anacostia Riverkeeper (82), Assateague Coastkeeper (75), Baltimore Harbor Waterkeeper, Chester Riverkeeper (78), Choptank Riverkeeper (75), Gunpowder Riverkeeper, Lower Susquehanna Riverkeeper (75), Lower James Riverkeeper, Miles-Wye Riverkeeper (73), Patuxent Riverkeeper (74), Potomac Riverkeeper, Sassafras Riverkeeper, Severn Riverkeeper (72), Shenandoah Riverkeeper, South Riverkeeper (70), Upper James Riverkeeper, VA Eastern Shorekeeper, West RhodeRiverkeeper.

# # #

Media Contact:

Fred Tutman; Patuxent Riverkeeper; 301-249-8200 ext. 7

Kathy Phillips; Assateague Coastkeeper; 443-235-2014

We’re working every day to protect, restore and preserve as water quality and a healthy Patuxent River. Also, we are planning river trips, reforestation, buffer preservation, wetlands restoration, and invasive species removal and enhancing the Patuxent Water Trail in preparation for the War of 1812 Commemorative!

You can download the latest edition of our organizational newsletter here:Spring 2011 Patuxent Riverkeeper Newsletter (120)

By Tom Terry

It was in the late 1950’s.  My brother Michael and I were fishing for eel and white and yellow perch on the bank of the Patuxent River with my Grandfather, Anthony (Tony) Poula, at our favorite fishing spot on Mr. Vernon Arnold’s property (Fig.1).   It was a typical spring day.  The ground was moist, the trees were almost in full leaf and the river was flowing by at its normal pace as there had been no recent heavy rains.

Our fishing spot on the river bank was under tree canopy, but we faced the river in a small opening where there were no shrubs or small trees nearby, so we could easily cast without getting our lines tangled up.   The opening was large enough that we could see up and down the river for about 75 feet to either side.  Beyond that distance the trees growing on the bank totally blocked the view.  The river at this location is narrow enough that a nice easy cast could propel the sinker and bait half way across the river and then the current would quickly carry the sinker and bait downstream so it ended up being about 15 feet from the river bank.    The river is wide enough, however, that there is about 50 feet of opening that tree canopies on either side cannot encroach on creating a narrow corridor that wood ducks, kingfishers, blue herons and other birds can use to travel up and down the river.   If we were quite and still we often saw kingfishers dive and catch minnows and wood ducks come squealing by looking for a protected place to land and feed or rest and preen.

Bald eagles in the 1950-60’s were so rare that I had never seen one despite the fact that I was a teenager and had fished, hunted, and explored all the surrounding woodlands and farms for years.  Red-tail, Cooper’s and sharp-shinned hawks were fairly common as were American kestrels, but bald eagles were something that I had only read about or seen in pictures.

Once we had baited our hooks with worms, cast our lines out, and put our rods in the crotch of a forked stick stuck into the ground, we sat down on the ground to watch the rod tips as they slowly moved up and down with the current.  We sat still and quite so that we would not spook the fish that might be tempted to grab our bait.  While waiting for the big strike, we enjoyed the sound of the river, the breeze moving through the new spring foliage, and the time away from farm chores, school work, and other duties.

And then, without warning, a very large bird appeared, flying about 20 feet above the river to our right and it flew right in front of us, no more than 40 feet away, then it continued up river and out of sight.    It was a mature bald eagle with all of its distinctive features—large wingspan, powerful hooked beak, brown body, white head and tail and majestic flight.

I don’t remember if we caught any eels or perch during that trip or not.  All that that I remember is being awestruck by seeing such a magnificent bird at so close a range in one of my favorite natural places.  We went home as content as successful explorers just returning home after visiting a new land.

We never mentioned the sighting to anyone but our family as many folks still considered birds of prey chicken thieves and game predators and they were often shot.  At this time pesticides such as DDT were also contributing to their decline.

I now marvel at being able to see bald eagles on a regular basis at Ample Grange Farm.  Many factors have contributed to their recovery, but we have to be ever diligent about educating the public about the role they play in the natural system and maintaining habitat for foraging and nesting, so that future generations can enjoy regularly seeing them along the Patuxent river corridor.