Editorial Board Guy Guzzone Mike Hoffman Jon Robinson Brian Parker Erica F. Parker Marta Vander Starre Web DoubleClickd Publishing Advertising - For display and classified advertising rates and information, contact Guy Guzzone Maryland Director Sierra Club 69 Franklin Street Annapolis, MD 21401 (410) 263-2230 Next Deadline - Oct. 27, 1997 Chesapeake is published periodically by the Sierra Club's Maryland Chapter. Annual dues of Sierra Club members pay for the subscription to this publication. Non-members may subscribe for $15.00 per year. The opinions expressed in this newsletter are, in general, aligned with those of the environmental community in Maryland, but are strictly those of the author and not necessarily official policy of local, state, or national Sierra Club entities. The Sierra Club prides itself on being a grassroots volunteer organization and concerns and opinions of all its members are welcome on these pages. Items for publication must be typewritten, double-spaced, and must include the name, address and phone number(s) of the author. Material may be edited for length, content or clarity at the discretion of the editor. Preference will be given to manuscripts on disc or emailed directly. Photographs, sketches, or other works of art are welcome. Materials cannot be returned unless a stamped self-addressed envelope is included with the submission. Send items for publication to Guy Guzzone (see address below). Change of Address - Send address changes to Sierra Club, 85 Second Street, 2nd floor, San Francisco, CA 94105-3441. For fastest service, please include your old and new addresses along with your 8-digit membership number. For membership information, contact the representative for your area listed on the outer cover of this newsletter.

Chapman Forest or Chapman's Landing? During the last two months, the struggle to preserve the 3.5 square mile Chapman Forest along the shores of the Potomac River has intensified. Chapman Forest is threatened by the Chapman's Landing plan, the largest INSIDE FALL 1997 ISSUE ICC--Not Worth the Price We'll Pay Impressions from the Alaska Trip |National Attack on Environmental Education Nascar Raceway could mean loss of Wetlands Outings Highlights Reflections: 35th anniversary of "Silent Spring" CBF Issues Wetlands Report Word from the Chair destruction/ construction proposal now pending in the State of Maryland. Chapman's Landing would be a second center for sprawl in Charles County, bringing sedimentation and pollution to the Mattawoman Creek, the Potomac's richest fish nursery, and to the Chesapeake Bay. Army Corps of Engineers Issues Permit On June 26, Colonel Randall Inouye of the Army Corps of Engineers signed a federal wetlands permit for the development proposal. The Corps' position is that although the Chapman?s Landing development may have serious impact on the environment, the Corps only has to consider the direct impact on wetlands within the project area. On July 2, the Friends of Mount Aventine, a Charles County organization, and Friends of the Earth, an international environmental organization, filed suit in federal court. The suit charges the Corps with illegally issuing a permit without the required Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). An EIS is a detailed study which would allow an informed weighing of the advantages and disadvantages to the public interest of issuing a permit. The Corps argues that it could issue the permit without an EIS because a permit was not required for the development. The Corps concedes that if a permit were required for the project to go forward, then an EIS would be necessary.Another argument made by the Corps is that the permitted work " i.e., roads crossing streams and storm water management ponds " is independent of the rest of the development. The Corps has never explained what purpose the roads and storm water ponds would serve without the Chapman?s Landing development. We consider it obvious that there is no valid purpose for these facilities without the development for which they were designed, and that the work for which the Corps issued the permit cannot rationally be called a "stand-alone project." The Corps also claims that the developer could have avoided wetlands impacts by building bridges, but that bridges were too expensive, so they issued the permit to destroy the wetlands. The Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) has yet to issue a permit for Chapman?s Landing. Preservation advocates have presented the MDE with compelling arguments against the issuing of a permit. Among these is that the impact on wetlands cannot be assessed, because there has been no valid wetlands delineation yet. The Corps has conceded that the backup data for an approved delineation are worthless, but maintain the delineation happens to be correct, anyhow, based on observations during a site visit. Memoranda produced by the Fish and Wildlife Service and the EPA express observations sharply different from those made by the Corps. Waders Support Chapman Forest In recent months, there have been numerous demonstrations against Chapman?s Landing. There are signs that this long and difficult effort is beginning to take effect. In June, about twenty people advocating the preservation of Chapman Forest attended Bernie Fowler?s annual ?Patuxent Wade-In.? For the last ten years, Fowler, a recently retired Maryland State Senator, has been hosting a ?wade-in? in Calvert County. People wade into the river until they can no longer see their toes -- a simple gauge of water quality. Seventeen people at the wade-in, including Maryland State Senate President Mike Miller, wore Chapman?s T-shirts, making their presence felt throughout the event. Senator Miller has demonstrated that his Chapman?s T-shirt was not just a gesture. One of the most influential politicians in the state, Senator Miller wrote a strong letter to Governor Glendening on August 4, saying, in part, ?I would like to work with you to ensure that this property receives careful and complete consideration as a Rural Legacy candidate, or a candidate for other Program Open Space funding? The State?s handling of this project is widely seen as the first test of the Smart Growth and Rural Legacy legislation.? In a speech at the wade-in, Maryland State Senator Roy Dyson (St. Mary?s County) spoke up for preservation of Chapman Forest. EPA Administrator Carol Browner and Congressman Steny Hoyer were also present and gave speeches on how important it is to clean up and protect the environment. Administrator Browner and Congressman Hoyer will have the opportunity to show whether their actions match their words as they choose their course of action on issues such as Chapman Forest. What can you do? Please write or call Governor Glendening and tell him to save Chapman Forest and Mattawoman Creek and to protect the Chesapeake Bay - and get others to do the same. You can contact him via fax: 410-974-3275; telephone: 800-811-8336; or letter: The Hon. Parris Glendening, Governor of Maryland, The State House, Annapolis, MD 21401. Also, please thank Senator Miller (301-858-3700) and Senator Dyson (301-994-2826) for their support of this valuable forest and wetlands area. For more information regarding Chapman Forest, contact: Friends of Mount Aventine, P.O. Box K, Bryans Road, MD 20616; telephone: 301-283-2948; fax: 301-375-7988; Home page: http://www.radix.net/~foma