BALTIMORE, MD—The Maryland Park Service has graduated 21 new State Park Rangers after four weeks of intensive training, the agency announced in a press release. The new rangers will join the 14th class of graduates from the Park Service’s modern ranger school program, which was established in 2009. “As I have visited our public lands across the state, I have […]
BALTIMORE, MD—The Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ Fall Oyster Survey recorded a remarkable year for juvenile oysters in Maryland waters, finding both prolific numbers and a widespread distribution throughout many regions of the Chesapeake Bay. The survey’s spatfall intensity index, a measure of reproductive success and potential population growth for oysters, was 86.8 spat, or juvenile oysters, per bushel, nearly […]
BALTIMORE, MD—Last month, the U.S. Department of Commerce notified Maryland Governor Wes Moore that it had declined Maryland’s request for a federal commercial fisheries disaster declaration that was sought to help address the economic and ecological damage caused by the spread of invasive catfish and snakeheads in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Maryland made the unique request in March as a […]
ANNAPOLIS, MD—This week, Governor Wes Moore was unanimously elected to serve as chair of the bipartisan Chesapeake Executive Council during a meeting hosted by the Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, D.C.. The council, which serves as the primary policy and leadership body of the formal Chesapeake Bay Partnership’s effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay, is comprised of the nine signatories […]
ANNAPOLIS, MD—Governor Wes Moore this week announced that more than 1.7 billion new juvenile oysters have been planted on sanctuary and public oyster fishery sites in Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay this year, surpassing an ambitious 2023 planting goal and setting a new annual record. The milestone means that the state has planted almost 7 billion oysters since launching its large-scale oyster […]
BALTIMORE, MD—The Maryland Department of Natural Resources this week announced the award of $22.9 million from the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund to 24 ecological restoration projects encompassing 95 sites throughout the state. The projects were selected to improve water quality and habitat in the Chesapeake Bay watershed while building local resilience to climate impacts. “This valuable funding […]
ANNAPOLIS, MD—Governor Wes Moore this week announced the availability of more than $100 million in local grants from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to expand and enhance public access to outdoor recreation and open space throughout Maryland. Through Program Open Space and Community Parks & Playgrounds programming, Maryland is continuing to meet the challenges of land conservation and recreation […]
ANNAPOLIS, MD—During an Eastern Shore “Bay Day” tour, Governor Wes Moore last week announced a major policy shift in how Maryland will deploy state resources to improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay and other waterways to restore the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays. At points throughout the day, the governor was joined by Lieutenant Governor Aruna Miller, U.S. Environmental […]