ELKRIDGE, MD — Rain clouds couldn’t stop the current class of the Howard County Watershed Stewards Academy from making a visible impact in the community last Saturday. All eight steward-candidates (and one volunteer youth) gathered on Red Barn Way in Elkridge to successfully stencil two local storm drains, completing the vital pollution-awareness project just before the forecast weather rolled in.

The effort began with a clean sweep, thanks to Terry Matthews, who cleared away debris and prepped the storm drains before the class arrived. Working efficiently under overcast skies, the eight students applied two layers of a white base coat to ensure maximum visibility. They then applied a county-approved stencil featuring a clear message for passersby: the top reads “Only rain down the drain,” while the front states “Drains to the Patapsco River.”

Strategically located near the entrance to Mayfield Woods Middle School, these stenciled drains aim to catch the attention of students, families, and school staff alike. The class hopes this visual serves as a daily reminder that whatever enters our storm drains flows directly into our local waterways. By keeping these drains clear of litter and pollutants, Elkridge residents can directly contribute to a cleaner, healthier Patapsco River.

Nancy has been instrumental in helping Stewards, Master Gardeners, and community members determine whether a Homeowner’s Inspection and Site Assessment (HISA) or a Bay-Wise Consultation is the right tool for their needs. Additionally, she collaborated with fellow Master Gardeners to develop an online assessment tool that helps residents select the appropriate service, significantly reducing duplicate efforts and improving resource efficiency.

As part of the Master Gardener program, Nancy cochairs of the Bay Wise Committee and continues to play a pivotal role in ensuring Bay Wise consultations are scheduled promptly while supporting her local community with effective stormwater management practices.

Nancy provided guidance and help on the capstone project for Clocktower Crossing HOA Board President, Teresa Weathington Guzman, to implement key best management practices. She also works with the Chesapeake Bay Trust team to evaluate grant applications for their program areas.

Furthermore, Nancy’s work on HISA reports is exceptional. By combining her expertise in botany and stormwater abatement, she delivers thorough, actionable assessments that yield outstanding results for homeowners.

February 2024

Greetings!

Because of your interest in the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed, we wanted to let you know about some new information available on MDE’s website.

Chesapeake Bay Restoration Spending Report

As part of Maryland’s annual budget process, the Departments of Agriculture, Budget and Management, Environment, and Natural Resources are required to report to the Maryland House and Senate Budget Committees on Chesapeake Bay restoration spending. From 2000-2023, Maryland spent about $15 billion on Bay Restoration activities. The 2023 report, as well as reports from previous years, can be found here. The Maryland Senate Public Safety, Transportation, and Environment Subcommittee held a Chesapeake Bay Overview budget hearing with the Secretaries of Environment, Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Planning on January 25, 2024. The recording of that hearing can be viewed here.

Improved Plans to Reduce Nutrients from Wastewater

MDE recently updated its core strategies to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus discharges from Maryland’s major wastewater treatment plants. These actions will ensure that Maryland continues to meet its clean water goals and Chesapeake Bay restoration commitments, while also stimulating a green economy and workforce development. A summary of the updated strategy, with a link to the full report, can be found here.

Wastewater Performance Tracking Results

Ensuring wastewater treatment plant compliance with Enhanced Nutrient Removal standards is one of Maryland’s priority Chesapeake Bay Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) strategies for reducing nitrogen and phosphorus pollution. To achieve Maryland’s WIP and Chesapeake Bay climate change goals, MDE set concentration targets for Maryland’s major wastewater treatment plants. The most recent performance tracking results are available via a link on the right side of the wastewater strategy page.

Winter Salts

Although winter salts are effective deicing tools, they can impact human health, the environment, and stormwater infrastructure. The best solution is widespread decreased use of winter salts. Resources and tips for applicators, stormwater permit managers, business and property managers, and around your home can be found here.

Thank you for all you do to protect the Bay and its tributaries!

Questions, comments, and suggestions about any of the above can be directed to mde.chesapeakewip@maryland.gov.

After a growing season, one of our Master Watershed Stewards (who’s also a Master Gardener) was asked to revisit with a homeowner. There had been a transformation. The homeowner corrected erosion problems identified during the initial Homeowner Interview and Site Assessment (HISA) with suggested new plantings and practices. The result are delightful.

The homeowner stated about their follow-through: “Yes, we incorporated your suggestions into a beautiful landscape plan for our yard. We still need to have some sodding done but otherwise the yard is coming along nicely and I’d say 90-95% of the erosion problem has been resolved.” In addition the homeowners had their lawn service raise the mower decks to mow at 3 to 4 inches to further slow the flow of water.

Clocktower Crossing entered into a mentorship agreement with the Howard County Watershed Stewards Academy (WSA) in September 2022. Resident Teresa Weathington Guzman completed the Master Watershed Steward certification course in the Fall of 2022. The project has been funded by the Howard County Community Stormwater Partnership and serves as Teresa’s Capstone project, which is required to complete the certification program.

Current area versus Planned Shade Garden

This project involves two primary activities that will decrease pollutants in the stormwater that flows from the community directly into the Little Patuxent River.

1. A contractor has been engaged to design and install a new conservation landscape, a rain garden, and up to 20 trees – all using plants that are native to our region.
2. The project will increase resident awareness on storm drains, rain harvesting, and the importance of conservation landscapes and native plants to slow the flow of water in the community. This will be achieved through a resident survey and several events:

• At the project launch BBQ, residents will learn about planned spring/summer activities, discuss best management practice (BMP) installations under design by the contractor, and consult with Master Watershed Stewards and Master Gardeners on how to slow the flow of stormwater.
• In the spring, there will be a series of Pull and Plant events to remove non-native invasive plants at two sites and replace them with native gardens.
• In the summer, the project will host a stormdrain stenciling event.

Stay tuned, Clocktower residents! Watch for Save the Date door hangers and mark project events on your calendars. These activities will be great opportunities to help improve stormwater and erosion issues in the community and to connect with neighbors.

Three Phase Action Project

A group of four Watershed Steward Academy (WSA) interns consisting of Shari Rosenberg, Kory Sutherland, Bob Hartranft and Jack Boccuzzi have initiated a three phased Action Project in the Oakland Mills area of Columbia Maryland. The project involves education about local water pollution sources affecting the health of the Chesapeake Bay and offers alternative practices that are more environmentally friendly. This information will be shared with Oakland Mills High School (OMHS) students via the Oakland Mills Speaker Series and at an environmental awareness event at Oakland Mills Interfaith Center.

At an OMHS class on March 21, 2023, the WSA team demonstrated how water pollution occurs using an Enviroscape model. The interns demonstrated how actions in Oakland Mills can negatively affect water quality downstream at the Chesapeake Bay. After the demonstration, the group discussed several Best Management Practices (BMP’s) that counteract these poor practices. The class focused on the use of rain barrels to collect rainwater from roof drains and slowly release the captured water.

This coincides with the environmental mantra of “Slow the Flow.” To facilitate and jumpstart the desired behavioral change, the group utilized the labor, energy and imagination of 25 seniors of Oakland Mills High School to decorate these barrels. WSA members will also participate in the OMHS Scorpion Speaker Series on April 14. This outreach event to additional OMHS students will disseminate watershed information thru entertaining games and videos.

WSA will ultimately raffle off the three decorated rain barrels at the Oakland Mills Interfaith Center’s Green Spring Fling event on May 7, 2023.  This third interaction with community is an annual outdoor event.  By participating in this event, it is expected that a broader, diverse audience will be present to receive messaging of watershed issues and procedures that individuals can implement to improve OUR environment.

For her WSA class project, Jem explored the neighborhood watershed and engaged her community to improve both her neighbor’s environmental knowledge and the environment. After assessing the area’s streams, nearby waterbodies, and storm drains, Jem did a Neighborhood Source Assessment (NSA) to find the distinctive nature of the community. She found that, like many suburban areas, it has single family homes with lawns and driveways, downspouts discharging on impervious surfaces and about 70% of the properties were impervious surfaces – hardly any areas to slow the flow of stormwater or mitigate the effects of runoff.

Working with seven different neighbors, on Chateau Ridge and Burnside Drives, 33 were trees planted.

Additionally, Jem helped raise awareness about:

• Rain Barrels
• Rain Gardens
• Conservation Landscaping

There will be follow-up to monitor the trees and their health as well as the planting’s ability to slow the flow.

The Watershed Stewards Academy congratulates Jem on her excellent Class Project, her ability to involve her community and her continued work to improve our streams, rivers, and bay.