Governor O’Malley Celebrates Earth Day in Annapolis
Students, local officials plant trees and discuss the environment

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ANNAPOLIS — Governor Martin O’Malley and more than 100 volunteers – including Anne Arundel County school students and state and local officials – celebrated the 37th Annual Earth Day by planting 16 native trees at the Chesapeake Ecology Center in Annapolis.

Joining the Governor were Annapolis Mayor Ellen Moyer, Anne Arundel County Executive John Leopold, Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Secretary John Griffin, Maryland Department of the Environment Secretary Shari Wilson, Chesapeake Bay Trust Chair Midgett Parker, and students from Adams Academy and Bates Middle School in Annapolis.

Governor O’Malley -- who on Friday signed the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) and an Executive Order establishing the Maryland Commission on Climate Change -- took the opportunity to again remind Marylanders that each of us will impact our environmental future, for better or for worse.

“Notwithstanding the many challenges facing our natural resources and our environment today, we have reason to be hopeful,” said Governor O’Malley, “for at the end of the day, our problems are man-made and so too are the solutions. The hands that have caused the harm now have the power to heal.”

Executive Director Zora Lathan briefed the crowd on the work of the Chesapeake Ecology Center, and DNR’s Urban Forester Mike Galvin discussed the importance of urban tree cover.

The Chesapeake Ecology Center is situated on 10 acres along the headwaters of College Creek. Since its beginning in 2002 the center has created 20 native plant demonstration gardens and sites in cooperation with members, volunteers, community groups, teachers and students to provide environmental education and develop on-the-ground habitat restoration/protection projects.

Maryland’s Urban Tree Canopy (UTC) goals seek to improve water quality by reducing water quantity in urban areas where stormwater designs leave streamside forests little opportunity to treat runoff. Thirty-six communities in Maryland have committed to participation in the UTC effort to date -- including Annapolis, Baltimore, Bowie, Cumberland, Greenbelt, Hyattsville, Rockville and 29 communities in Baltimore County.

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April 23, 2007

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is the state agency responsible for providing natural and living resource-related services to citizens and visitors. DNR manages more than 446,000 acres of public lands and 18,000 miles of waterways, along with Maryland's forests, fisheries and wildlife for maximum environmental, economic and quality of life benefits. A national leader in land conservation, DNR-managed parks and natural, historic and cultural resources attract 11 million visitors annually. DNR is the lead agency in Maryland's effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay, the state's number one environmental priority. Learn more at www.dnr.maryland.gov