A few weeks ago, UMD students gathered together to enjoy a classic Maryland night at the annual SGA Crab Feast. Nothing says Maryland quite like a mouth full of crabs and Old Bay, that’s for sure. But, as pointed out in the Diamondback, the price for this year’s Crab Feast, $22.50, was much higher than it was just last year, $17.50, and a far cry from what it was in 2005, $10. [1] The Diamondback reported a quote from Dining Services’ Senior Associate Director Joe Mullineaux, who stated, “Back when we first started, crabs were going for about $70 a bushel delivered. I think we’re paying about $195 a bushel right now.” [1] So, why is it that it is more expensive than ever right now to get crabs from the Chesapeake Bay? I thought that Maryland was supposed to live and breathe by the Blue Crab?
Well, this State may live and breathe by the Blue Crab, but the Blue Crab is struggling to live and breathe by this state - literally. This year the Chesapeake Bay experienced one of the worst “dead zones” in history [2]. What was once a dazzlingly beautiful and ecologically productive ecosystem has been decimated by pollution, and now over 1 cubic mile of the Bay is in an oxygen-depleted state, known as anoxia, due to a process called eutrophication. Eutrophication occurs when excess nutrients such as phosphorous and nitrogen pour into a body of water and stimulate unnatural algal growth. Once the algae dies, they deplete the water’s oxygen levels as part of the decomposition ultimately creating areas classified as “dead zones.” Due to this pollution, we are now starting to see immense declines in the Bay’s Blue Crab population because they literally can no longer live and breathe in the polluted waters.
Not only the crabs are suffering – Bay Residents report seeing thousands of dead fish floating on the Bay’s surface
For years the water quality of the Bay has been an issue and the six states in the Chesapeake watershed have individually attempted to limit pollution from vehicles, sewage and industrial waste, and agricultural runoff going into the Bay. For instance, Maryland implemented “The Maryland Water Quality Improvement Act” in 1998, calling for the addition of a phosphorous-reducing enzyme to poultry feed and lowering nutrient levels in poultry litter. In 2000 Maryland also signed the “Chesapeake 2000,” establishing more than 100 goals to reduce pollution and restore habitats, protect living resources and promote sound land use, and engage the public in restoration. In 2007, the Chesapeake Executive Council signed the Forest Conservation Initiative, committing to conserve 695,000 acres of forests by 2020 [3]. Beyond laws, acts and agreements, some Maryland politicians have physically taken to the water to raise awareness for the Bay. Each year, former State Senator Bernie Fowler does an annual test to see how far he can wade into the water before he can no longer see his sneakers. He tracks the number each year, and uses it to bring attention to the overwhelming levels of pollution in the Bay [4].
While it is clear that significant strides have been made, the six states within the Chesapeake Bay watershed have not done enough to address this complex issue and to prevent the pollution from worsening. Because of this, Barack Obama signed an Executive Order in 2009 mandating the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to take control of the Chesapeake Bay restoration program [5]. Since 2009, the EPA has installed a new pollution permitting system for the Bay, entitled, “Total Daily Maximum Loads” [6], and the Bay has improved slightly, but there is still so much work to be done before our cherished natural landmark is restored. Part of that work is to guarantee that nearly every single tributary to the Bay is monitored and managed correctly in order to ensure the least amount of pollution possible. Then, and only then, the Bay may have a chance, and so will our beloved Maryland Blue Crab.
So how does this relate to the University of Maryland? Well, many of you may have noticed when you’re walking to The Varsity, or to the ERC, you cross over a bridge – and if you stop on that bridge and look to your left and to your right, you’ll see a polluted, sediment-filled, eroded creek that runs through our campus. By all accounts, the Campus Creek is in poor condition. Years of development—both within the campus footprint and the greater Campus Creek watershed—have increased the impervious areas draining to Campus Creek and have significantly decreased the forest buffer that naturally protects the stream. The result has been a stream with severely eroded banks, little ecological habitat, and potential threats to the built infrastructure as roads and water and sewer lines, which become unstable as the stream may shift. Without restoration of Campus Creek this area will continue to degrade and be a persistent source of pollutant loading (including sediment, oils and road grit) to the Chesapeake Bay.
Left: a severely eroded stream bank resulting in poor water quality, stream ecology, impacts to forest resources (falling trees), and unsatisfactory aesthetics and recreational opportunities. Right: a severely eroded stream bank near a very steep slope. The guardrail at the top of the slope is University Blvd. Continued bank erosion or slope failure could result in major safety concerns for motorists.
This is far from a new campus issue - for nearly 15 years there has been discussion across campus about restoring the Campus Creek, but nothing has happened. Restoring the Creek has been listed as a high priority in several studies including the campus’ Sustainable Water Use and Watershed Workgroup Report (UMD, 2014), Facilities Master Plan (FMP) 2001 to 2020 and reinforced in the FMP 2011-2030, University of Maryland Potential Water Quality Improvement Study (Coastal Resources, 2007), as well as several other Anacostia watershed restoration plans (e.g., Anacostia River Watershed Restoration Plan and Report, February, 2010). For all this time, money has stood in the way of making this project a reality. But finally, after years of UMD personnel pursuing funds to revitalize the Creek, last year the Maryland Department of Natural Resources decided to allocate $1.5 million dollars to restoring our Campus Creek!
Unfortunately, and as usual, this is not as simple as it seems. The $1.5 million was contingent upon UMD developing a restoration plan, which would have to be done through an external contractor, costing roughly $400,000. Additionally, the DNR money was only granted for fiscal year 2015, beginning on July 1st, 2014 and ending on June 30th 2015, meaning that if we do not at least start using the funds by June 30th, 2015, then they will be revoked and allocated elsewhere. Unfortunately, Facilities Planning staff, who are working on this project, have been unable to get the university to take advantage of this incredible opportunity, and have not able to secure funding for the restoration plan. Since we are already halfway through fiscal year 2015, even if the university funded this contractor immediately, we could not get the Creek’s restoration underway by the June 30th, 2015 deadline. As such, Facilities Planning has asked for the Maryland DNR to extend this offer to fiscal year 2016, which they have verbally agreed to, but not officially committed to. However, Facilities Planning feels confidently that the DNR will extend this offer to fiscal year 2016, giving us another chance at this missed opportunity. In anticipation of this extension, Facility Planning is seeking funds from the Sustainability Fund, other campus stakeholders, and off campus grants. This is in the hopes that UMD’s Facilities Council, chaired by Provost Rankin, pays the remaining amount that the other grants do not cover, roughly $250,000, to fund this project and make the Campus Creek not only a functioning ecosystem, but also a beautiful, aesthetically pleasing feature of our campus that students can enjoy and be proud of.
A before (left) and after (right) example of a Montgomery County creek restoration project.
Provost Rankin, who also oversees all campus academics, should not only be enthralled by the ecological and aesthetical value of restoring the Campus Creek, but also by the academic benefits. Several professors have already said they would use the Campus Creek as an educational resource and would love to incorporate it into their classroom. Students in many fields would have the opportunity to participate and observe the restoration project from beginning to end and gain valuable, hands-on experience. Academic areas of interest may include: forestry management, natural resource management, plant science and landscape architecture, civil and environmental engineering, environmental science and technology, public health, and urban studies, among others.
Lastly, beyond all of the benefits that we would accrue from restoring the Campus Creek, we would also be putting ourselves one step ahead of the game in terms of complying with state laws. As efforts to restore the Bay continue to increase, stormwater management laws are becoming increasingly tighter. For instance, under the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System law (MS4), the university will likely have to restore this Creek eventually in order to better manage its stormwater runoff [7]. So, the question becomes: will we stay ahead of the curve and abide by this law now with the help of $1.5 million from the Maryland DNR? Or, will we fail to take advantage of this opportunity, and simply have to pay our own $1.5 million in the future to comply with the MS4 law?
The choice seems simple: restoring the Campus Creek will benefit the campus’ environmental footprint, make our campus more beautiful, provide students with real-world problem solving experience, save us $1.5 million in future expenses, help save the Chesapeake Bay, and who knows, it may even help to bring down the prices for Crab Feast! We’ve already missed the opportunity to restore the Creek in 2015, and fortunately, we will likely get a second chance to do this in fiscal year 2016. We all know second chances do not come frequently in life, and if we miss this opportunity again, it will certainly be a mistake that the entire campus community regrets for years. Let’s make the right choice, UMD.
A beautiful view of the Chesapeake Bay [8]
This post was written by the SGA Director of Sustainability, Ori Gutin. If you have any questions or comments, he can be reached at omgutin@gmail.com.
[4]http://www.chesapeakebay.net/blog/post/bernie_fowler_sees_his_sneakers_through_31.25_inches_of_water