Ninth Annual Upper Eastern Shore Wade-In Happening June 2

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GRASONVILLE – Roll up your pants and lace up your sneakers with members from the Upper Eastern Shore Tributary Team on Saturday, June 2, from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m., as they host the Upper Eastern Shore Wade-In on Eastern Bay. This year’s event will feature kayaking, bird walks, trail hikes, picnicking under the big tent, live bluegrass by the Bay Country Gentlemen, bay-related art exhibits, wildlife photography sessions, and a variety of children’s programs. Several local politicians are also scheduled to participate in the Wade-In this year. There is no fee for the event and it will take place rain or shine.

In what has become an annual event for each of Maryland’s 10 Tributary Teams, the Wade-Ins were inspired by former State Senator Bernie Fowler, who began wading into the Patuxent River 17 years ago with family and friends to highlight concerns about declining water quality in Maryland’s tributaries and the Chesapeake Bay. Senator Fowler remembered that, as a child, he could wade into the Patuxent and easily see his shoes. The event became known as a Wade-In and is characterized by participants wading into a stream, river, or the Bay, and measuring the point at which they can no longer see their shoes, commonly known as the Sneaker Index. Fowler challenged the other nine Tributary Teams to host Wade-Ins or similar water quality awareness events of their own.

“Come learn to advance Bay health as you discover that a few minor lifestyle changes -- like not over-fertilizing, using the appropriate amount of laundry detergents, recycling, carpooling, and picking up behind your pet -- can improve environmental health now and for future generations,” said Senator Fowler. “These events offer something for the whole family and good music, too. And be sure to bring your white sneakers!”

Major water bodies in this basin include the Miles, Chester, Elk, Bohemia, Sassafras and Northeast Rivers. There are numerous tributary creeks and several large embayments (Eastern Bay, Prospect Bay and Crab Alley Bay). Back Creek forms the western end of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal.

The Upper Eastern Shore, along with all tributary basins in the Chesapeake, contributes to and is impacted by nutrient pollution. Nutrient pollution can be divided into two major categories – point sources (pollution that comes from a single, definable location such as a wastewater treatment plant or industrial discharge) and non-point sources (pollution that cannot be attributed to a clearly identifiable, specific physical location, such as runoff from land and atmospheric deposition). Runoff from different land uses, point sources and atmospheric deposition are the major sources of nutrients within the Bay watershed.

From Annapolis, Baltimore and Washington: Cross the Chesapeake Bay Bridge (MD Route 50 East) to exit 43B (Chester River Beach Road). Turn right on Chester River Beach Road, then left on Route 18. Take the first right onto Perry’s Corner Road. The entrance to the Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center is located about a ½-mile on the right and is clearly marked with an entrance sign. Turn right at the sign onto a dirt road called Discovery Lane. Follow Discovery Lane until it ends at the Visitor Center parking lot.

On the day of the event, please call (410) 827-6694 for directions or if you have questions.

Since 1995, Maryland’s Tributary Teams have assisted with the implementation of the State’s watershed-based plans to reduce nutrient pollution to Maryland’s rivers and the Chesapeake Bay. Support for the Tributary Teams is provided by staff at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR); however the members are volunteers whose tireless energy results in invaluable contributions to restoration efforts. The Wade-Ins are just one way the Teams highlight local water quality and get their communities involved.

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May 30, 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