Bernie Fowler has been running his annual Patuxent River Wade-In since 1988, and scientists and politicians have been showing up every year to go wading with him.They come for several reasons: to keep alive their commitment to cleaning up the Patuxent River and to monitor the progress of the cleanup. They use the most basic of instruments: their eyes and their feet and a tape measure. How far out can they wade and still see their feet? When Bernie Fowler grew up on the river, he could wade out to shoulder depth and still watch blue crabs scrambling through the underwater grasses. When he saw the water grow cloudy, Fowler became a politician on a mission. Chesapeake Quarterly, Maryland Sea Grant's quarterly magazine, reports on research, extension, education and other Chesapeake Bay issues and activities of interest to the marine community. It is produced and funded by this program, which receives support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Editors, Michael W. Fincham and Jeffrey Brainard; Production Editor and Art Director, Sandy Rodgers.
more . . . about Ball Games, Boat Trips, and Wade-Ins
If blue crab numbers start declining again in Chesapeake Bay - and they will at some point - then scientists and policymakers will re-open some old debates about what policies to recommend for rebuilding the fishery. Chesapeake Quarterly, Maryland Sea Grant's quarterly magazine, reports on research, extension, education and other Chesapeake Bay issues and activities of interest to the marine community. It is produced and funded by this program, which receives support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Editors, Michael W. Fincham and Jeffrey Brainard; Production Editor and Art Director, Sandy Rodgers.
more . . . about Crisis, Crescendo, Consensus
A team made up (mostly) of scientists from the oldest marine lab on the Bay scheduled a game against a team made up (mostly) of military veterans. And the veteran playing second base was a politician named Bernie Fowler, a lean and athletic man in his late 40s who had just won his first electoral campaign by promising to fight for a cleanup of the Patuxent River. Chesapeake Quarterly, Maryland Sea Grant's quarterly magazine, reports on research, extension, education and other Chesapeake Bay issues and activities of interest to the marine community. It is produced and funded by this program, which receives support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Editors, Michael W. Fincham and Jeffrey Brainard; Production Editor and Art Director, Sandy Rodgers.
more . . . about Game Days along the Patuxent
The cleanup of the Chesapeake Bay began with a boat trip, but it's probably not the famous trip you've read about. According to the familiar narrative, U.S. Senator Charles 'Mac' Mathias launched a historic, well-publicized boat trip in June 1973 that would last five days and carry him to key ports of call around Maryland's portion of Chesapeake Bay. The tour, as planned, turned into a major media event that helped Mathias publicize the pollution problems of the Bay and persuade Congress to fund a major scientific study of the estuary. These were rare acts of political leadership that earned this Republican senator from Frederick, Maryland lasting fame as 'the father of the Chesapeake Bay Program,' the current multi-state campaign to clean up the Bay. Chesapeake Quarterly, Maryland Sea Grant's quarterly magazine, reports on research, extension, education and other Chesapeake Bay issues and activities of interest to the marine community. It is produced and funded by this program, which receives support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Editors, Michael W. Fincham and Jeffrey Brainard; Production Editor and Art Director, Sandy Rodgers.
more . . . about Chesapeake Crossings
Judging only from headlines, it can seem like American citizens and scientists are frequently at odds. Scientists say it is highly certain that the atmosphere and oceans are warming, that humans evolved from other species, and that the earth is billions of years old. Many Americans disagree. Chesapeake Quarterly, Maryland Sea Grant's quarterly magazine, reports on research, extension, education and other Chesapeake Bay issues and activities of interest to the marine community. It is produced and funded by this program, which receives support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Editors, Michael W. Fincham and Jeffrey Brainard; Production Editor and Art Director, Sandy Rodgers.
more . . . about Do Americans Trust Scientists?
It's easy for scientists and others who value scientific inquiry to get confused and discouraged by polls on climate change. Recent polls of all Americans found that only a minority believe that human activities, like emissions from autos and power plants, are the primary cause of the global rise in temperatures. A separate survey of Marylanders released last year found the same result. But the overwhelming consensus among climate-change scientists, based on the available evidence, blames human activities. Chesapeake Quarterly, Maryland Sea Grant's quarterly magazine, reports on research, extension, education and other Chesapeake Bay issues and activities of interest to the marine community. It is produced and funded by this program, which receives support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Editors, Michael W. Fincham and Jeffrey Brainard; Production Editor and Art Director, Sandy Rodgers.
more . . . about Poll Finds Marylanders Trust Scientists on Climate Change
