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Mattawoman Saved From Cross County Connector

Maryland River named 4th most endangered river in the nation - please help Mattawoman Creek

Dear Supporters of the Maryland Sierra Club,

Everyone has that special creek where the water is refreshing and the swimming and fishing are perfect.  Unfortunately, one of those gems that is a favorite to many Maryland residents is in jeopardy.  Only 20 miles south of Washington DC, Mattawoman Creek is the last best remnant of what Chesapeake Bay rivers were like when the Bay teemed with life. Lucikly, the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) denied a permit which would have badly impacted the watershed and it's wetlands.

Charles County officials have recently reversed course from going full speed ahead with massive new development to the western part of the county. They backed down from requesting permits to construct a new proposed four lane, 6.5 mile highway called the "Cross County Connector extension" that would plow across the full width of the sensitive Mattawoman Creek watershed, the highest quality fish spawning nursery in the Chesapeake Bay region.

Mattawoman Creek is SUCH an important habitat that it has been recognized by American Rivers as the FOURTH MOST ENDANGERED RIVER IN THE COUNTRY! If Maryland is for cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay, let’s be sure not to pollute one of the remaining healthy tributaries.

ACT NOW! Please contact Governor Martin O'Malley. A personal letter is most effective:

The Honorable Martin O’Malley
One State Circle
Annapolis, MD 21401

Phone calls, faxes, and emails are also very helpful.
Phone: 1-800-811-8336        Fax: 1-410-974-3275   Email: governor@gov.state.md.us

Message (in your own words is best): 

Subject: Thank You for Denying Wetland Permits for the Cross County Connector Extension.

 

“Thank you and MDE for denying permits for the proposed Cross County Connector extension in Charles County that threatened the Mattawoman Creek.  The Mattawoman Creek is the healthiest fish nursery in the Chesapeake Bay because it is protected by surrounding forests and wetlands. This highway proposal would have destroyed the Mattawoman Creek by increasing traffic, development, and pavement in its watershed. Let’s build smarter, with public transportation like a light rail link to Waldorf.

 

Your name

Your address (with town and zip code so the Governor will see the breadth and depth of concern.)

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Want to do more? Ask a friend or relative to call the Governor also. Send a letter to the editor of your local paper. Contact your other public officials and representatives with the same message, thanking them for delivering on their promise to clean up the Bay by denying a permit that would have destroyed wetlands.