Environment information sheet, 2005?

ENVIRONMENT Restoring the Chesapeake Bay • Governor Ehrlich’s Chesapeake Bay Restoration Act will cut nitrogen pollution from wastewater treatment plants nearly in half. “A huge victory for the Bay, the most significant environmental advance in Maryland in nearly 20 years. ” - Chesapeake Bay Foundation President, Will Baker • Governor Ehrlich launched aggressive plans to replenish bay grasses — seeded 63 acres in past 3 years — and oysters which help naturally filter the Bay. • Governor Ehrlich launched the Corsica River Project; the region’s first targeted effort to remove an entire river from the federal list of impaired waters. • Governor Ehrlich doubled funding for cover crops, resulting in 290,000 new acres of cover crops, stopping 2 million of pounds of Nitrogen pollution from entering the Bay and its tributaries. • The Governor partnered with Virginia Governor Tim Kaine to forge a common sense plan to preserve the Bay’s menhaden cap. Menhaden is the principal forage food for striped bass, bluefish, and weakfish and a principle filter feeder in the Bay ecosystem. Preserving Maryland’s Open Space • The Ehrlich Administration has preserved 60,000 acres of Maryland’s landscape and has provided funding to preserve an additional 50,000 acres. • Because of the Governor’s efforts, nearly one in every five acres in Maryland is permanently protected. • For two consecutive years, Governor Ehrlich has funded Program Open Space, which funds parks and conservation areas, at the highest levels in Maryland history Cleaning Maryland’s Air • Governor Ehrlich launched the Healthy Air Act to reduce air pollution from coal-fired power plants by 250,000 tons annually.