On June 28, Captain Andrew R. McCown was named the 2025 recipient of the ShoreRivers Award for Environmental Stewardship as part of the organization’s annual Solstice Celebration. This annual award recognizes an individual or entity in the Chesapeake Bay watershed for their transformational accomplishments as a steward of the environment.

McCown has provided environmental education and astonishment to thousands of students over nearly five decades at Echo Hill Outdoor School and played a pivotal role in forming the Chester River Association in 1986. A teacher, leader, oysterman, musician, and storyteller, he delights in seeing others find wonder in a place he holds so dear. His ability to endear students of all ages to a natural resource — from the small minnows swept into a marsh on a rising tide, to the food chain, economy, culture, and history they sustain — is a testament to the devotion and admiration he has for the Chesapeake.

“[Andrew McCown is] one of the best people I know at connecting people’s hearts to our rivers,” said ShoreRivers’ Executive Director Isabel Hardesty, who fondly noted her own time spent learning from McCown at Echo Hill 30 years ago while presenting the award. “It is because of his unparalleled ability to inspire and connect that he is the recipient of our award this year, and that he is close to all of our hearts at ShoreRivers and for people across the Chesapeake Bay.”

McCown also embodies the value of optimism ShoreRivers embraces by lifting up success stories and highlighting the abundance of life that exists in the river despite the challenges it faces.

“When I started at Echo Hill Outdoor School, which was five years old at the time, it was 1977. And in the world of environmental education there was a lot of despair… but we decided that we weren’t going to do that. That what we were going to do was promote wonder and find ways to connect people to the environment, to endear them to it,” said McCown.

As part of the presentation, McCown was given a hand-crafted, mosaic buoy adorned with salvaged and unique treasures that recognize his history and connection to the Chesapeake Bay. This bespoke piece of art was created and donated by Ann Swanson, the inaugural winner of the ShoreRivers Award for Environmental Stewardship in 2019, who is also the former executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Commission and a current governing board member for ShoreRivers.

ShoreRivers — and more than 340 supporters in attendance at the event who provided an emotional standing ovation during the remarks — were proud to have this opportunity to recognize McCown for his lifelong pursuit to share his curiosity and reverence for the Chester River with others. Visit shorerivers.org/leadership to learn more about this award and the organization’s impact on the Eastern Shore.

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I have ShoreRivers protects Maryland’s Eastern Shore waterways through science-based advocacy, restoration, education, and engagement.

shorerivers.org

 

The Waterfowl Festival invites you to “Local Catch Feast” — a delicious celebration of local seafood, community, and conservation — taking place on Sunday, September 14, 2025, at 2:00 PM at 40 S. Harrison Street, Easton, MD.

This special event features a menu of the invasive Chesapeake Channa (Snakehead), Blue Catfish, and crab soup. Enjoy local beverages, delicious sides, and desserts as you mingle with fellow supporters and conservationists. You’ll also have the opportunity to meet our 2024 and 2025 conservation grantees, whose innovative work is helping to protect the natural heritage of the Chesapeake region.

Guests will get an exclusive preview of this year’s Waterfowl Festival Poster, browse new Waterfowl Festival merchandise, take a chance on a raffle or two, and take a sneak peek inside our newly redesigned Waterfowling Museum! Be the first to hear exciting updates about new venues and attractions coming to Festival 54 this November!

Come hungry. Leave inspired.

Our Local Catch is a celebration of what makes the Eastern Shore unique — its bounty, its beauty, and its commitment to protecting our shared resources for generations to come.

Many thanks to our sponsors: Fello., Eastern Shore Tents and Events, Dorchester County Tourism, Four Dogs Brewing Co.

Event Details:

• Date: September 15, 2025

• Time: 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM

• Location: Waterfowl Festival Building, 40 S. Harrison St, Easton, MD

• Admission: Tickets for sale online at waterfowlfestival.org/feast

About the Waterfowl Festival

Since 1971, the Waterfowl Festival has raised nearly six million dollars for conservation and education efforts. Proceeds from the festival support various environmental, art, student scholarships,  and cultural initiatives, ensuring that future generations can understand and enjoy the beauty and diversity of waterfowl and their environments. The festival also plays a vital role in supporting the local community, drawing visitors from around the country and boosting the regional economy.

Along with summer swimming comes ShoreRivers Bacteria Monitoring season. It is advised that people not swim 24-48 hours after a major rain.

Every summer, ShoreRivers deploys a team of community scientists to monitor bacterial levels at popular swimming and boating sites, providing vital information on human health risks to the public. Their samples are then processed, according to standard scientific protocols, in ShoreRivers’ in-house labs. The program follows the Environmental Protection Agency’s standard protocols for collecting and analyzing samples. It makes the results of that testing public, informing people about current bacteria levels as they plan their recreational activities in our waterways. Results are posted every Friday, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, at shorerivers.org/swim and on both the organization’s and its individual Riverkeepers’ social media pages.

A second page, shorerivers.org/swimmable-shorerivers-espanol, was established in 2023 to share this program with the Spanish-speaking community. Additionally, 14 signs can be found at public sites around the Eastern Shore that explain the goals of the Swimmable ShoreRivers program and indicate where users can find weekly results in both English and Spanish. These signs (and the program at large) are made possible thanks to funding from the Cornell Douglas Foundation, and ShoreRivers’ Riverkeepers will continue working with local county officials to install more.

Along with summer swimming comes ShoreRivers Bacteria Monitoring season. It is advised that people not swim 24-48 hours after a major rain.

Every summer, ShoreRivers deploys a team of community scientists to monitor bacterial levels at popular swimming and boating sites, providing vital information on human health risks to the public. Their samples are then processed, according to standard scientific protocols, in ShoreRivers’ in-house labs. The program follows the Environmental Protection Agency’s standard protocols for collecting and analyzing samples. It makes the results of that testing public, informing people about current bacteria levels as they plan their recreational activities in our waterways. Results are posted every Friday, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, at shorerivers.org/swim and on both the organization’s and its individual Riverkeepers’ social media pages.

A second page, shorerivers.org/swimmable-shorerivers-espanol, was established in 2023 to share this program with the Spanish-speaking community. Additionally, 14 signs can be found at public sites around the Eastern Shore that explain the goals of the Swimmable ShoreRivers program and indicate where users can find weekly results in both English and Spanish. These signs (and the program at large) are made possible thanks to funding from the Cornell Douglas Foundation, and ShoreRivers’ Riverkeepers will continue working with local county officials to install more.

Chesapeake Conservancy’s Board of Directors today announced the appointment of Susan Shingledecker as the organization’s new CEO, effective September 8, 2025. A seasoned nonprofit executive with deep roots in conservation and the Chesapeake region, Shingledecker previously served as Chesapeake Conservancy’s vice president and director of programs from 2017 to 2020.

“Susan’s return is a homecoming we are thrilled to celebrate,” said Chesapeake Conservancy Board Chair Stephanie Meeks. “Following a nationwide search, the Board is confident that Susan brings the strategic leadership, nonprofit management experience and deep passion for the Chesapeake Bay that this role requires. She is uniquely positioned to build on our strong foundation and guide Chesapeake Conservancy into its next chapter.”

Shingledecker most recently served as executive director of Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP), where she led a collaborative community of earth and climate science data professionals working to leverage the power of data to address the planet’s most significant environmental challenges. In that role, she built strong partnerships with federal and state agencies, academic institutions and private-sector technology firms and worked closely with NASA, NOAA, USGS and other key stakeholders to advance innovative, data-driven solutions.

“I’m honored to return to Chesapeake Conservancy and lead this incredible team working to protect the nation’s largest estuary and one of the most iconic and vital landscapes in the country. My five years at ESIP have given me an incredible understanding of the opportunities for data to inform our conservation work, increase our efficiency and grow our impact. I am excited to combine this experience with my past work in conservation and outdoor recreation,” said Shingledecker.

In addition to her leadership roles at ESIP and Chesapeake Conservancy, Shingledecker has held a range of influential positions throughout her career. She served as vice president of the BoatU.S., where she advocated for public access and outdoor recreation. Earlier in her career, she led renewable energy programs for the Maryland Energy Administration and served as a policy analyst with the National Governors Association.

Shingledecker has contributed her expertise to several advisory and technical committees focused on environmental stewardship and maritime policy. She served as a federal advisory committee panel member on NOAA’s Hydrographic Services Review Panel, product technical committee chair of the American Boat and Yacht Council’s Aquatic Invasive Species Product Technical Committee and served on the steering committee of the Chesapeake Bay Observing System. She holds a master of environmental management from Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment and a bachelor of arts in international studies from American University’s School of International Service.

Shingledecker resides in Severna Park, Maryland, with her husband and two sons, where they enjoy sailing on the Chesapeake Bay.

EJ Amyot will continue to serve as interim president and CEO, as well as chief operating officer, until Shingledecker officially begins her role as CEO.

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Chesapeake Conservancy is the only watershed-wide organization focused on both land conservation and stream restoration to achieve a healthier Chesapeake Bay. We’re utilizing and sharing the latest groundbreaking data and technology, including artificial intelligence, to determine where to focus conservation efforts for the most impact using the least resources. We partnered to help create 248 new public access sites and permanently protect some of the Bay’s special places like Werowocomoco, Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park, Mallows Bay National Marine Sanctuary, Fort Monroe National Monument, Elktonia-Carr’s Beach Heritage Park and Pissacoack along Fones Cliffs on the Rappahannock River.

www.chesapeakeconservancy.org

 A piece of tape dangles from a tree alongside the Blue Bike Trail in the Pocomoke State Forest. Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources is planning to cut patches of trees along the trail, stirring resistance from local conservationists. (Photo by Christine Condon/ Maryland Matters)

Driving down Route 113 between Snow Hill and Pocomoke City, the trailhead for the Blue Bike Trail is easy to miss.

There aren’t any signs or hiking blazes, but nestled in the woods is a grassy parking area and the beginning of a 0.7-mile walking trail in the Pocomoke State Forest.

The trail may be short in length and unassuming from the roadside. Still, a commercial logging plan proposed by Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources has brought the lesser-known trail into the limelight.

The department plans to cut patches of trees from a 45-acre tract beside the trail. But a group of naturalists, birders and other community members are fighting the plan, arguing that the tract represents a rare mature forest on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, with a host of benefits to people and wildlife.

As Joan Maloof, a Berlin-based conservationist who founded the nonprofit Old Growth Forest Network, studied the plan for 2025, the land in Pocomoke State Forest stood out.

“This particular one: It’s 97 years old, and it sounds like it has some big trees, mixed species,” she thought to herself. “I want to go check it out.”

The plot was established in 1927, though DNR says the trees are varying ages. Some were planted after clearing. Some grew naturally. But walking through the forest, Maloof saw something unique.

“I go check it out, and I realize: ‘Oh, my God, this is such a beautiful forest, and it’s right on a recreational trail,’” said Maloof, who is also an emeritus professor of environmental studies and biology at Salisbury University.

Maloof spearheaded an effort to send comments to DNR, pushing for two areas, totaling about 69 acres, to be removed from the logging plan, which designated some 1,700 acres for cutting and thinning.

Joan Maloof, who founded the nonprofit Old Growth Forest Network, stands along the “Blue Bike Trail” in Pocomoke State Forest. (Photo by Christine Condon/ Maryland Matters)

The state issues logging plans each year for its state forest acreage. And with any cut, the department strives for balance, including between the needs of the ecosystem and the desire to support the local logging industry, said State Forester Anne Hairston-Strang. The department believes the cut in Pocomoke achieves that balance, she said.

“We want to save the bay. We keep a lot of our land rural,” Hairston-Strang said. “Want to keep our land rural? We need a viable rural economy, and so [there’s] this balance between our ecology, the social impacts for jobs and the economic impacts, where we’re using, what the land grows.”

The pushback about the Blue Bike Trail seems to have caught the state’s attention. The area is still on DNR’s list to be logged this year, but the state is slow-walking the cut.

“We’re not rushing into any harvest,” Hairston-Strang said. “We’re going to talk to people. If it needs to go through the work plan process again, it can. We’re not rolling any machines in.”

At the very beginning of the Blue Bike Trail, rows and rows of thin, and therefore relatively unremarkable, loblolly pines dominate the landscape on either side.

But then, the forest transforms into something altogether different. Thicker trees begin to crop up beside the trail: oaks, sassafras, beeches and more.

That’s about where hikers see the first strand of pink tape encircling a tree trunk, delineating the beginning of the proposed logging area.

“I immediately recognized that it was a special tract of forest,” said Bronwyn Betz, a Berlin resident who is also opposed to the cut. “And I know from hiking around here that sometimes that’s not the case. Sometimes you get a lot of pine, and it’s just not as ecologically valuable.”

DNR notes that the Pocomoke State Forest includes several designated “Old Growth Ecosystem Management Areas,” totaling 4,623 acres. In those places, DNR is aiming to nurture the forest and avoid cutting, with the goal of eventually bringing the tracts into “old growth” status. Five additional acres of the state forest are already considered old-growth.

The area proposed for cutting, which DNR calls the “Tarr tract,” is not in either of those designated areas, Hairston-Strang said.

“We don’t want to just provide mature habitat. We have a big commitment to it. We like our old growth. We like our big trees,” Hairston-Strang said. “We’re just looking to provide some of the other end of the age spectrum, too, because we really are seeing habitat declines.”

A wooden stake sits alongside the “Blue Bike Trail” in the Pocomoke State Forest. The Department of Natural Resources is planning to cut patches of trees along the trail. (Photo by Christine Condon/ Maryland Matters)

A goal behind the cut is stimulating the growth of the understory, Hairston-Strang said, growing an additional habitat type in the Pocomoke forest. That’s part of the reason why DNR selected patches of the Tarr tract for cutting.

“If we just select a tree here and there, you’re probably not going to generate the kind of light levels that will really cause that understory response,” she said. “Some people will walk up to this and say, ‘Oh, it’s a clear-cut.’ And they don’t see the careful retention of some individual trees.”

Even if it is not a clear-cut, Maloof argues that the tree removal will do too much harm to the overall ecosystem — and to the public’s enjoyment of it.

“That’s not good enough. We want you to just not. It’s only 45 acres,” Maloof said. “Please listen to the people.”

She fears that DNR ceded too much to the logging industry, which may have sought to log more of the thicker trees, as opposed to the thinner loblolly pines.

DNR argues that it follows best practices for cuts. Maryland State Forests are also certified as sustainably managed through Forest Stewardship Council and Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Hairston-Strang said.

“We pay for people to come out and criticize us every year, and we do both office and field audits, so they’re out in the field and looking at sites,” Hairston-Strang said.

The department is hoping creating clearings in the forest could also attract more deer and turkeys, since the area is a hunting location that allows disabled hunters to shoot from their vehicles using the trail, Hairston-Strang said. And that it will reduce fuel for potential wildfires.

Dave Wilson, an Eastern Shore birder who also serves on Maryland’s Critical Area Commission for the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays, said he’s walked the trail since the 1990s.

“It was always really good for forest interior-dwelling species — songbirds that require large contiguous areas of woods,” said Wilson, who recently sold his 30-year-old birding trip company called Delmarva Birding Weekend.

That includes black-and-white warblers, scarlet tanagers, prothonotary warblers and more, Wilson said. But he’s also spotted other species, such as red-shouldered hawks and Eastern screech owls. He worries that if patches of trees are removed from the area, destroying certain nesting habitats, many of the beloved bird species wouldn’t return.

Wilson said that he considers the Tarr tract one of the few pieces of state-managed land on the Lower Shore that presents a good opportunity for birding.

“Most of what they manage, they just cut every 30 or 40 years for loblolly pine monoculture, and there’s really nothing living in there,” Wilson said. “It’s like a cornfield from a biodiversity standpoint, and there’s thousands of acres of that. And one of the reasons we’re up in arms about this — is because we feel like that needs to change.”

Betz said the Pocomoke State Forest is something of a “hidden gem,” compared to the more well-known Ocean City-adjacent hiking trails, such as those on Assateague Island, which hosts both state park and national park land.

She first visited the trail after it appeared on the logging plan, and quickly decided it was worth fighting for. Bright white mountain laurels bloomed among a diverse array of trees, creating a rare environment.

“I know they say they’re going to selectively cut, but when you have these beautiful mountain laurel shrubs and different things — damage is going to happen to things, no matter what they say,” Betz said.

She brought a group of young 4-H students to the trail, and a few of the students penned letters pushing back against the cut, she said.

“Many of us have grown up camping, hiking and biking in these woods. We do not want this beautiful trail to be logged,” wrote her 15-year-old son, Ewan. “There are many species that will lose their homes if this plan is not stopped.”

Betz said she hopes that DNR will not only opt against cutting along the trail, but put up signage along the roadside, so that the trail gets more use from local residents and visitors alike.

“I had a hard time finding it — and then I had a hard time finding it a second time,” she said.

Betz said she understands the desire to uplift local logging companies and mills. But the trail also has an economic value as-is, thanks to the ecotourism it’s capable of attracting — and already attracts, she said.

“You really can’t put a dollar amount on it,” Betz said. “It actually probably brings in way more money than people would think.”

Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources is planning to cut patches of trees along the Blue Bike Trail in Pocomoke State Forest, stirring resistance from local conservationists. (Photo by Christine Condon/ Maryland Matters)

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by Christine Condon, Maryland Matters
June 23, 2025

Maryland Matters is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Maryland Matters maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Steve Crane for questions: [email protected].

Along with summer swimming comes ShoreRivers Bacteria Monitoring season. It is advised that people not swim 24-48 hours after a major rain.

Every summer, ShoreRivers deploys a team of community scientists to monitor bacterial levels at popular swimming and boating sites, providing vital information on human health risks to the public. Their samples are then processed, according to standard scientific protocols, in ShoreRivers’ in-house labs. The program follows the Environmental Protection Agency’s standard protocols for collecting and analyzing samples. It makes the results of that testing public, informing people about current bacteria levels as they plan their recreational activities in our waterways. Results are posted every Friday, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, at shorerivers.org/swim and on both the organization’s and its individual Riverkeepers’ social media pages.

A second page, shorerivers.org/swimmable-shorerivers-espanol, was established in 2023 to share this program with the Spanish-speaking community. Additionally, 14 signs can be found at public sites around the Eastern Shore that explain the goals of the Swimmable ShoreRivers program and indicate where users can find weekly results in both English and Spanish. These signs (and the program at large) are made possible thanks to funding from the Cornell Douglas Foundation, and ShoreRivers’ Riverkeepers will continue working with local county officials to install more.

 

Along with summer swimming comes ShoreRivers Bacteria Monitoring season. It is advised that people not swim 24-48 hours after a major rain.

Every summer, ShoreRivers deploys a team of community scientists to monitor bacterial levels at popular swimming and boating sites, providing vital information on human health risks to the public. Their samples are then processed, according to standard scientific protocols, in ShoreRivers’ in-house labs. The program follows the Environmental Protection Agency’s standard protocols for collecting and analyzing samples. It makes the results of that testing public, informing people about current bacteria levels as they plan their recreational activities in our waterways. Results are posted every Friday, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, at shorerivers.org/swim and on both the organization’s and its individual Riverkeepers’ social media pages.

A second page, shorerivers.org/swimmable-shorerivers-espanol, was established in 2023 to share this program with the Spanish-speaking community. Additionally, 14 signs can be found at public sites around the Eastern Shore that explain the goals of the Swimmable ShoreRivers program and indicate where users can find weekly results in both English and Spanish. These signs (and the program at large) are made possible thanks to funding from the Cornell Douglas Foundation, and ShoreRivers’ Riverkeepers will continue working with local county officials to install more.

It was admittedly a Hail Mary, but a farmer-led group that was hoping to collect 20,000 signatures in a matter of days to petition a new solar power bill to referendum said it fell just short last week.

The farmers were one of two groups that talked about putting new energy policy before voters but, despite the rumblings, neither one turned in petitions to challenge the new laws via referendum, state elections officials say.

In order to do so, the groups would have had to turn in 20,053 signatures by May 31, which would have given tbem until June 30 to collect the 60,000 signatures they would ultimately need to put the issue on the ballot in 2026.

The lack of submissions means Maryland will go another year without a statewide referendum on the ballot. The last one was in 2012, when voters petitioned same-sex marriage to the ballot, which voters ultimately approved.

One group — which registered itself as the Maryland Environment, Labor and Industry Coalition — planned to challenge the Next Generation Energy Act, and would have focused its campaign on a portion of the bill that denies renewable-energy subsidies to trash incinerators that burn waste to generate electricity.

The other group was targeting the Renewable Energy Certainty Act, which focuses on solar farm siting in the state.

Both groups had pushed for Gov. Wes Moore (D) to veto their bills, but he signed each during his final bill signing session of the year, on May 21. With just 10 days until the petition deadline, the waste-to-energy supporters decided their chance for a successful petition drive was unlikely.

But the farming community decided to throw the Hail Mary, and collected thousands of signatures in an attempt to hit the cutoff.

The solar bill essentially prohibits local governments from establishing zoning rules that preclude large solar fields and sets uniform statewide standards for solar sites.

Farmers are particularly concerned by a provision that caps solar facilities at 5% of “priority preservation areas,” or agricultural land, in any one county. They say the ceiling is too high, and could take too much farmland out of production. Many believe that no farmland should be used for solar panels at all.

“While this cap is certainly better than nothing, it still leaves thousands of acres of farmland open to commercial solar development,” wrote Maryland Farm Bureau President Jamie Raley in a recent statement. “The result of this bill is concerning, but it only strengthens our resolve to keep fighting for Maryland’s farmland.”

Jay Falstad, a leader of the solar energy petition effort, said his group amassed just under 20,000 signatures before it ran out of time. The group estimated that it would have needed at least 23,000 to meet the state’s cutoff, because signatures are frequently tossed out for non-compliance with a strict set of state rules.

But Falstad, who is a founder of Farmers Alliance for Rural Maryland, or FARM, said that a State Board of Elections official initially informed him that he’d have until Monday, June 2 — the next business day after the May 31 deadline, which fell on a Saturday — to make the submission. He said he was shocked when officials reached out on May 30 to say he’d only have until midnight on May 31. He’s confident he could have reached the cutoff number with a few extra days.

“We would have made the necessary number, had it not been for this accelerated timeline,” said Falstad, who is also the executive director of the Queen Anne’s County Conservation Association. “The momentum was on our side.”

Jared DeMarinis, Maryland’s state elections administrator, said the initial communication, allowing until June 2, was a mistake. While other election deadlines, such as business contribution filings, can move to the next business day, the ballot petition filing deadline is set under the state constitution, he said.

Once the office realized its mistake “we made sure that they were aware of it,” DeMarinis said. “It is in the Maryland Constitution, so it’s not like it was hidden in any sort of fashion.”

Regardless of the outcome, Falstad said he was impressed by the strong response to the petition drive. Organizers received signatures from each Maryland county, he said, although the effort was focused in rural areas on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, as well as in Montgomery, Harford and Carroll counties.

Falstad himself collected signatures on the Eastern Shore at fairgrounds and ballfields, farm stores and local parks.

“We had people running from their car to the pavilion to sign the petition through rain and thunder,” Falstad said. “The level of commitment and dedication on the part of people that wanted to sign the petition was inspiring.”

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by Christine Condon, Maryland Matters
June 5, 2025

Maryland Matters is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Maryland Matters maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Steve Crane for questions: [email protected].