Bays

Anne Arundel County Fire officials said Wednesday at 5 p.m.  that crews had controlled an outdoor brush, wood and mulch fire in the 700 block of Pittman Road, near Arundel Cove and Curtis Bay. According to Division Chief Keith D. Swindle, the department received a call at about 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, for a fire at NOVA Recycling, in the 700 block of Pittman Road in Curtis Bay. Crews arrived at the scene to find a “heavy volume of fire” from...

Having moved to Maryland two years ago, I've learned something about its people: Marylanders stand up for the Chesapeake Bay. A healthy bay underlies the regional economy and is a fundamental part of our rich heritage. Four decades ago, Congress took action to protect places like the bay with the passage of the hallmark Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act. These laws protect the bay for crabbers, oystermen, sailors and swimmers alike, while also protecting characteristic Maryland wildlife like the piping plover and the Maryland darter.

While frequently lumped together as one homogenous group, environmentalists every now and then come at the same problem from different perspectives and suggest varying solutions. That is the case with the legislation creating the Maryland Agricultural Certainty Program ("Bill would give farmers 10-year reprieve on new regs," March 27). Too much is being made of the fact that the environmental community has different opinions about this bill. We all take seriously legislation to improve water quality.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - One of the major reasons the Orioles were able to outlast the Tampa Bay Rays - a team built on a foundation of strong pitching - for a postseason berth last season was because of the strength of their bullpen. The first two games of the season opening series between these two teams at Tropicana Field have had a playoff feel to them - with dramatic swings of momentum throughout every inning. On Wednesday night, that was evident as the Orioles silently walked off the field as the Rays celebrated an 8-7 walk-off victory on Matt Joyce's solo homer off reliever Tommy Hunter.

Supporters and critics of legislation that would grant farmers a 10-year reprieve from new environmental regulations squared off before a House committee Tuesday, with much of the debate focused on provisions in the bill barring any public disclosure of those granted the deferral. Farm group representatives, O'Malley administration officials and others told members of the House Environmental Matters Committee that offering state farmers a shield from new environmental cleanup requirements could boost efforts to clean up the Chesapeake Bay.  Farmers would voluntarily agree to reduce polluted runoff of soil and fertilizer from their farms beyond what they're now required to do, proponents say. Sen. Thomas M. Middleton, the bill's chief sponsor, said many farmers are having to invest in new equipment and facilities now to comply with recently adopted state regulations on how, when and where fertilizer can be spread on the ground.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Despite everything they accomplished last season, the Orioles realize they will spend the next six months still proving people wrong. Coming off a year in which they defied the odds and scoffed at conventionality, these Orioles continued right where they left off in Tuesday's regular-season opener against the Tampa Bay Rays, a team they outlasted last season to make the playoffs. The Orioles wore down reigning American League Cy Young Award winner David Price, then battered shutdown reliever Jake McGee in a five-run seventh inning to open 2013 with a 7-4 victory at Tropicana Field over a Rays team that many predict will compete for a World Series title.

Crabbing season officially begins in Maryland today, but the Chesapeake Bay's blue crabs apparently haven't gotten the word. My colleague Richard Gorelick reports that watermen, seafood dealers, restaurateurs and state natural resource officials all believe that chilly bay water temperatures lately could mean a meager harvest for now. "The cold temperatures are likely to keep early catches low," Brenda Davis, blue crab program manager of...

April 1 is the official start to the blue crab harvest in Maryland. But don't reach for your mallet just yet. "It's not time for crabs," said Jessica Borowski, a manager at Midtown BBQ and Brew. "It's too cold out. " The crabs seem to agree. The Chesapeake Bay's water temperature hasn't risen enough for the crabs to become active - and catchable. Consumers set on Maryland crabs will see limited availability for now - and prices to match. Prices for Chesapeake Bay crabs are typically high at the start of the season, and people who want them in April will have to pay even more than usual.

Imagine running a 10-kilometer race more than 185 feet in the air, looking down and seeing the Chesapeake Bay. For those who've sat in traffic for what seemed like hours trying to get from one side of the Bay Bridge to the other - and even for those who haven't - Sparrow Rogers and Peter Paris want you to have another kind of experience on the 4.3-mile span. The Queen Anne's County commissioners recently approved use of the bridge for the inaugural Chesapeake Bay Bridge Run, and the event is expected to gain the support of the Department of Natural Resources for use of the parking lots at Sandy Point State Park in Annapolis, where the race is scheduled to begin.

The state has signed off on a proposal by a private group to run a 10k race across the Bay Bridge next year. The Maryland Transportation Authority agreed to allow the event, run by Bay Bridge Run LLC, on Nov. 9, 2014. The deal also includes 2015 and 2016. The tentative route runs from Sandy Point State Park, over the bridge to the finish line in Queen Anne's County. About 20,000 attended the first 4.3-mile walk across the bridge on April 27, 1975. The 10k run sponsored by the Annapolis Striders came a decade later.