The Chesapeake Executive Council held its meeting on Oct. 1. The Council’s job is to lead Bay restoration efforts, establish the policy direction for the restoration and protection of the Bay and its living resources, and be accountable to the public for progress made under the Bay agreements.
By those measures, the Executive Council has fallen short. Following the meeting, Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) President William C. Baker issued this statement.
“For Bay restoration to succeed, each of the jurisdictions must meet their promised pollution reductions. EPA agreed to hold them accountable if they slip.
“Once again, the Council ignored the failure of Pennsylvania to meet its commitments. Worse yet, EPA failed to hold the Commonwealth accountable, even as CBF, its partners, and the Attorneys General of Delaware, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Virginia are suing EPA in federal court to do just that.
“If the Council and EPA refuse to exert leadership, Bay restoration efforts are doomed to fail.
“The Executive Council’s sole objective this year was to sign a Climate Change Directive. Sadly, that directive is only a start, taking small steps at a time when bold action is needed.
"The Climate Change Directive must do more to meet scientists’ findings. While Virginia has set a pollution-reduction goal that includes mitigating the damage from climate change, Maryland and Pennsylvania have not.
“The 2025 deadline is just around the corner. In 2016, success seemed possible. Today, hope is fading. The last 40 years of Bay restoration efforts have been littered with promises broken and commitments unmet.”
# # #
