Around 2 p.m. Sept 27, Sen. Bernie Fowler joined the RiverFest celebration, wading into the St. Mary’s River. The long-time environmental activist began the tradition in an attempt to “focus attention on a precious body of water.” Fowler said this was his seventh wade-in this year.
The retired senator and Calvert County Commissioner was joined by Delegate John Bohanan and St. Mary’s County Board of Commissioners President Jack Russel, both with young citizens atop their shoulders. Fowler and a large group of concerned citizens joined hands and stepped into the river. He said he was able to walk out chest deep, about 5 feet before, he lost sight of his tattered white sneakers.
Fowler declared, “We need to come together as citizens and lovers of the Chesapeake Bay.” While he said the St. Mary’s River is better off than some others, it still requires attention. “Beauty is only skin deep. This is one of the most threatened rivers in the state,” Fowler said.
President of the St. Mary’s River Watershed Association Joe Anderson said, “Bernie’s right. People have to take this seriously.” He indicated issues facing the river and the Chesapeake Bay are “more than just environmental”, as they affect the economy and culture of our area as well.
Anderson said, “[The St. Mary’s River] is on the EPA’s impaired rivers list and our goal is to get it off that list.”
Fowler mentioned his enthusiasm for President Obama’s executive order to make the Chesapeake Bay clean-up a top priority and his unwillingness to settle on the current lawsuit against the EPA for past violations. He told The BayNet.com, “We mean business.”
The overalls and straw hat-clad leader urged awareness and action for the health of the Bay’s watershed and said, “Southern Marylanders are known to get the job done.”
“We need to clean up these waters and this air… whether you’re an environmentalist or the richest man in St. Mary’s County.” Fowler told the crowd, “We’re all in this together.”
