CURRENTS THE YEARLY JOURNAL OF THE CHESTER RIVER ASSOCIATION VOL. 27 • 2017 Letter from the CONTENTS PRESIDENT Change. It comes with this time of 3 | Cover Story: Rethinking Ag year as the long days of summer give way to the vibrant colors of autumn. 4 | The Corsica? It’s Complicated The waterfowl are back, the rockfish have moved into the Chester, and the 7 | A Surge in SAV leaves have turned. At the Chester River Association office, change is also in the air. 8 | Tale of Two Creeks After long and careful deliberation through the spring and summer, CRA’s board approved a merger between CRA, Midshore Riverkeeper Conservancy, and the Sassafras River Association. The new organization will be called ShoreRivers. Evoking the image of the interconnectedness between land and water, ShoreRivers will be a powerful and unified voice for clean water on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and it will continue and expand the work of CRA in the Chester watershed. ShoreRivers will be based at the Eastern Shore Conservation Center in Easton, while maintaining the existing Chestertown and Georgetown offices of CRA and SRA. Our current Riverkeeper, Isabel Hardesty, will assume the role of Regional Director of the Chester and Sassafras programs, and Tim Trumbauer will become the next Chester Riverkeeper. The rest of our fantastic staff will continue to support efforts in these two northern watersheds. While there is much administrative work being done to ensure a smooth transition, the energy and excitement in the office are palpable. Our staff members were early and enthusiastic supporters of the merger, and are truly excited to bring the collective resources the merger represents into our local programming. The merger will allow us to improve the health of the Chester on a scale and scope that cannot be achieved independently. We will increase our impact while maintaining our grassroots identity through our Chester Riverkeeper and staff, an active Chester River Watershed Board composed of CRA board members, and our devoted volunteer corps of Chester Testers and oyster growers. On another note, I want to extend a special thanks to Anna Wolgast for her leadership and vision while serving as CRA’s Executive Director for the past four years; Anna will be retiring this fall. She did a fabulous job of hiring and empowering a superb staff whose infectious love of the river and dedication to their work has been a tremendous boost in engaging with the community. Anna quietly guided CRA through challenging Kathy Thornton times and leaves us stronger for her presence. Putting on my new hat and speaking as chair of the ShoreRivers Board, I am very excited that Anna has agreed to serve on the board of the merged organization, bringing her experience as an CRA MISSION executive director and knowledge of CRA programs to the new Achieve our vision of a healthy Chester River for organization. our community and future generations through We have not forgotten Chester River Association’s roots. science-based advocacy, restoration, and outreach. Without the dedication and vision of many people over the years, CRA would not be the vibrant engaged organization it is today. We’ve been active for 30 years and will continue to rely on you, the most important asset the Chester has, even as the organization adopts its new name. Cover photo of soil scientist Dr. Ray Weil by Shane Brill. President,nt ChesterCheh ster River Riverr AssociationAssoco iation 2 500 acres, 5 farms and ONE BIG PROJECT Story by Ellen Uzelac Photos by Shane Brill t started as an experiment early this fall. Would generation farmer participating in the project that a test group of progressive farmers change up involves 500 acres of grain on five farms in Kent and the way they plant and fertilize in a bold bid to Talbot counties. More farms may be added next year. reduce nitrogen use, enhance soil health, and "This is an exciting time for agriculture. I’ve been Iimprove water quality in the Chester River and its tributaries? As Paul Spies, Chester River Association’s former "What these farmers are doing agricultural outreach specialist, frames it: "For us, the could help promote industry-wide main goal agronomically is what is the biggest bang for the buck for water quality? What these farmers are change. Is there skepticism? Sure. doing could help promote industry-wide change. Is The question is: Will it work? These there skepticism? Sure. The question is: Will it work? These farmers want to find out." farmers want to fi nd out." The four-year initiative, developed by CRA, —Paul Spies represents a radical rethinking of conventional farming practices. If it does work, there could be significant gains in water quality. The pluses for doing this 40 years and we’re still learning. I don’t farmers? A reduced need for costly nitrogen fertilizer, know a farmer who doesn’t have a test plot growing improved soil health, and higher crop yields. some place. We’re all trying to grow healthier, more efficient crops." "Higher yields, less fertilizer? If we can make that happen, we’ll do it," says Allen Davis, a sixth- Continued on Page 12 Brothers Olin Davis, left, and Allen Davis at the fi eld where they planted a mixed seed cover crop. 3 The Corsica Conundrum Is the Corsica River healthy? It’s complicated. By Tim Trumbauer, Watershed Manager " oly @#$%!" that, this tributary of the Chester River had the only recorded fish kill in the watershed in 2017. The fish In the relatively unexciting realm of water kill was almost certainly caused by a nutrient-fueled quality monitoring, one doesn’t hear (or algal bloom. Hutter) those words often. This particular exclamatory remark was triggered by an algae This is not encouraging stuff. sample near Centreville Wharf on the Corsica River. Chester Riverkeeper Isabel Hardesty had just pushed The poor water quality near the Centreville Wharf 50 milliliters of Corsica River water through a glass is particularly disheartening since Corsica River microfiber filter using our LaMotte Company Code restoration has been targeted with a significant 1050 Syringe Assembly — affectionately called the investment of time, brain power, and money over "chlorophyll thingy." As the water is pushed through the chlorophyll thingy with a plunger, the filter collects fine In the Corsica, we have materials, including chlorophyll pigments (a measurement of algae) and other particulate matter. relatively healthy nontidal Fresh out of the package, a clean filter is bright white. Typically, after processing a sample, the filter waters yet unhealthy tidal turns a light tan or green color — similar to a green tea. That day, the filter looked like black sludge. waters. Why? Unfortunately, the waters at Centreville Wharf routinely produce dirty filters, often representing the the past two decades. Here’s a brief timeline: In 1998, highest level of algae that we measure throughout Maryland’s Clean Water Action Plan designated the the Chester River watershed. Here’s some pretty Corsica as a river "in need of restoration." As a follow sorry math: Of the 13 sites we tested for algae up, in 2004, the town of Centreville and partners between 2014 and 2016, the Centreville Wharf area including the Chester River Association published averaged more than twice as much as the next the Corsica River Watershed Action Strategy. most polluted site. Doubly unfortunate, this is not The action plan outlined 13 strategies to remedy the only negative superlative associated with the water quality issues like excessive sediments, the Centreville Wharf area. It also has the worst or nearly presence of fecal coliform, and an overabundance of worst water quality in terms of measured nutrient nutrients. In 2006, a stakeholder group, the Corsica pollution, sediment pollution, and clarity. Not only Implementation Committee, launched with representatives from state and local government, the Chester River Association, Corsica River Conservancy, and Master Gardeners. The group still meets monthly. Its mission: to track water quality progress and develop new water quality initiatives. How does all that translate into on-the-ground restoration? At last count, the Corsica River Conservancy had installed nearly 400 rain gardens in and around Centreville along with several river-friendly vegetated ditches called bioswales. Other improvements at the wharf itself: a living shoreline, pervious pathways, and native plantings. So what’s wrong with Centreville, a model for the implementation of river-friendly practices? Most of the pollution reduction strategies or goals have been met or Google map 4 Tim Trumbauer Tim The Centreville Wharf area, pictured here, suffers from very poor water quality. exceeded, yet we still have poor water quality at the Chesapeake Bay is cleaner than our local waters. Centreville Wharf. The closer to the Bay you are, the cleaner the water. Fittingly, the areas downriver in the Corsica tend It wouldn’t be a big jump to assume that current to have much better water quality than near the efforts aren’t working — but that would be an Centreville Wharf. In our 2016 Chester River Report oversimplified conclusion. First, some background. Card, the tidal Corsica River received the lowest At CRA, our water quality monitoring is divided grade: a disappointing D. The reason? Poor water into two major programs: tidal and nontidal. Tidal quality in the Centreville Wharf area drags down the waterways are just that — any water that has a average. measurable tide. Our tidal waterways are also marked by varying levels of salinity. If you have a dock and In contrast, the nontidal waters in the Corsica a boat, chances are you live on a tidal waterway. watershed get high grades for clean water, Nontidal creeks and streams, on the other hand, have consistently receiving a B.