As an out-of-state University of Maryland student, family and friends back home like to ask if I've tried crabs or oysters, foods that come from the Chesapeake Bay.
Despite the bay's iconic status in the state, it remains far too polluted, marine life continues to decline, and we have even seen dirty water take a toll on human life. We should be doing everything we can to protect the bay, but Gov. Larry Hogan has recently repealed rules to control phosphorus run-off from agriculture, which contributes to 59 percent of the sediment pollution in the bay ("Does Maryland have the political will to restore the bay?" Jan. 27). These aren't the only threats the bay is facing. Loopholes in the Clean Water Act currently leave most of Maryland's streams, many of which are connected to the bay, unprotected, which threatens the drinking water of 4 million Marylanders.
While the Chesapeake Bay faces grave threats, the U.S. EPA has thankfully taken notice. Last spring, the agency proposed a new rule to close these loopholes in the Clean Water Act. The final rule promises to restore and preserve the bay for years to come.
On February 4, a joint Congressional hearing on the rule will occur. Sen. Ben Cardin, who sits on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, must use this opportunity to stand up and support this rule. As someone with a strong environmental record, he must continue to show support for clean water in an effort to mitigate the natural and man-made phenomena that threaten our state's most treasured body of water.
Aaron Aber, College Park
The writer is an Environmental Science and Policy major at the University of Maryland.