Local Creeks

I'm a big fan of clean water. I look forward to the day when I can go swim in my local creek and not have to worry about toxins or diseases. I want to be able to stand in the water up to my waist and see my feet in clear water. I want to catch the large fish and large oysters (the size of dinner plates!) that Captain Smith bragged about when he first visited the Chesapeake Bay in the 1600’s.

Take a look at the map of the fighting 31st. Clean water is the environmental issue locally.

Delegate Kipke raised awareness about a year ago about the poor conditions of Marley and Furnace Creeks. Recently Redmond and Dwyer held a public meeting about the poor conditions of Rock Creek.

What concerns me about these awareness campaigns is that everyone is still playing the blame game. Whose fault is it that the local waterways are still dirty?

Some blame private landowners with leaky septic tanks, others blame government for letting the pumping station infrastructure decline. The unpleasant truth is that we’re all to blame. Every one of us contributes a little bit to the run-off and pollution going into the waterways. And every one of us needs to accept responsibility to clean it up.

True, the single biggest thing that the government can do is to upgrade the pumping stations to prevent untreated sewage from flowing into the creeks. That's been a huge problem. Some money has been allocated. The notorious Cox Creek Wastewater Treatment plant is finally scheduled to get some much needed (and expensive) upgrades.

The next crusade will be in dealing with stormwater runoff. A major storm, like we’ve seen frequently this summer, can undo years worth of progress on cleaning the waterways.

When the environmental movement first took off in the 1970’s, rivers were literally catching on fire, fish were choking on trash and industry pumped raw untreated wastes into the creeks through big pipes. Things have changed for the better. Nobody is afraid that Rock Creek is going to catch fire. Not only is it illegal to throw your trash into the water, but it’s unseemly and rude as well. Major industries have to comply with the Clean Water Act.

But the population of the watersheds keep growing. As we solve one problem, a new problem comes along to replace it. As we removed lead from gasoline and increased fuel economy, more people started to drive farther. We have to keep running just to stay in place.

Clean water should not be a political issue. President Richard Nixon recognized as much when he signed the Clean Water Act. We need to stop playing the blame game. There is plenty of blame to go around. We need to work towards solutions.