Bay Restoration

Column on rape sends wrong signals Susan Reimer's column regarding the lessons from the Lamar Owens rape case seemed to send a familiar message: "When in doubt, blame the girl" ("The lessons to take from Owens verdict," July 25). I can remember when the comments about rape victims included, "she dressed too suggestively," "her blouse was too low-cut," "her skirt was too short," "her morals are questionable," "she's not a virgin," "she shouldn't have been walking there at night," "she has a bad reputation" and "she got him too excited."

Scientists, watermen and recreational users of the Chesapeake Bay are monitoring the now-brown water coursing down the Susquehanna River, hoping that history doesn't repeat itself. Since Tropical Storm Agnes dumped millions of tons of sediment and pollution into the bay in June 1972, devastating bay grasses and aquatic life, flood- waters in 1996, 2003 and 2004 also have made their mark. But while this week's deluge will not come close to matching Agnes in terms of water volume, it shares one ominous characteristic that could set it apart from more recent storms: timing.

More than $7.1 million in revenue has been collected this year from 175 owners of wastewater treatment facilities as part of the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Fund, Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. announced today. "The revenue from this historic effort is enabling us to make future generations proud to call Maryland home of the Chesapeake Bay," Ehrlich said in a statement. "I applaud Comptroller Schaefer and the state comptroller office's work with the Maryland Department of the Environment for getting this program up and running so quickly."

Three Maryland congressmen called on the military yesterday to end its opposition to paying the state's "flush tax" to help clean up the Chesapeake Bay. "Not only should they contribute to the flush fee, but they should contribute in a big way to bay restoration," said Rep. Wayne T. Gilchrest, a Republican from the Eastern Shore. He was responding to an article in The Sun that documented 48 major spills totaling almost 20 million gallons of sewage into Chesapeake Bay tributaries over the past decade from the Army's Aberdeen Proving Ground in Harford County, the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Charles County and Fort Meade in Anne Arundel County.

A new program aims to match local governments so they draw expertise from one another about how best to protect the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers. The Chesapeake Bay Program, a federal-state partnership that guides bay restoration efforts, recently launched the Peer Match program to share information among communities. Christopher Conner, a spokesman for the program, said the idea was to get counties, cities and towns that have adopted bay-friendly programs to assist other communities.

A redesigned Chesapeake Bay license plate, complete with lush grasses, crabs and a heron, is giving bay restoration efforts a financial boost. The Chesapeake Bay Trust is expected to announce tonight that the new "Treasure the Chesapeake" license plate brought in more than $850,000 for bay protection projects last year. That means about 85,000 residents purchased the plates last year, when the redesigned version made its debut. The bay plates cost $20, of which the Motor Vehicle Administration keeps half.

THE FATE OF historic legislation to improve the health of the Chesapeake Bay lies with the Maryland Senate. Passage of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Restoration Fund would provide crucial funding to upgrade Maryland's largest sewage treatment plants to help reduce nitrogen pollution - the bay's biggest obstacle to recovery. This is clearly the most important legislation for the Chesapeake Bay in many years, not just because it would significantly reduce pollution, but also because it sets a much-needed example for elected officials in other bay watershed states that must take similar action.

Imagine this assignment: Find a way to raise $11 billion by 2010. That's the chore assigned to a 15-member Chesapeake Bay watershed finance panel appointed yesterday by the Chesapeake Executive Council. The group must come up with recommendations for financing bay restoration efforts by 2010 because state and federal officials have set that year for meeting bay cleanup targets. Their recommendations are due by the end of the year. Panel members include a former interior secretary, a former governor, financial and economic experts, and officials with experience in agriculture, air quality and funding for wastewater treatment plants.

The Ehrlich administration moved yesterday to allay opposition to its plan for a voluntary Chesapeake Bay restoration fund by proposing to require that donations to the program be disclosed. The Department of Natural Resources moved to amend its bill, part of Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s legislative agenda, in response to concerns that powerful interests could seek favor with the administration by making secret gifts to the fund. "It's not meant to curry favor with the governor. It's meant, quite frankly, to help clean up our bay," Ehrlich policy adviser Bernie Marczyk told the Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee.

If the Ehrlich administration gets its way, Marylanders will be able to heal the Chesapeake Bay by buying bay-themed spring water and sportswear and by telling cashiers at their favorite shops to keep the change. Details of the governor's proposal to raise millions of private dollars for a Chesapeake Bay Recovery Fund emerged yesterday in the plan's first airing before state lawmakers. Natural Resources Secretary C. Ronald Franks said that the goal was to raise $24 million by 2010 for large-scale projects such as rebuilding oyster populations and planting grasses that boost oxygen for marine life.