WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.), a senior member of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, lauded appropriators for ignoring President Trump’s short-sighted budget by fully funding the Chesapeake Bay Restoration Program. The president’s proposal zeroed out funding for the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Chesapeake Bay Program entirely or severely cut funding for other core programs that help maintain and restore the health of the Bay.
“The Chesapeake Bay is a national treasure and an economic engine for Maryland and the region, but that didn’t stop the president from wanting to cut the program. I am pleased that more thoughtful heads prevailed,” said Senator Cardin. “The Bay program is delivering encouraging results throughout the watershed area and abruptly pulling the federal government out of this effective regional partnership would have been devastating to the water quality, wildlife and our regional economy that depends so much on a healthy Chesapeake Bay.”
The Chesapeake Bay is the nation’s largest estuary, and more than 11 million people obtain their drinking water directly from the rivers and streams throughout the region that eventually flow into the Bay. The EPA Chesapeake Bay Restoration Program is funded at $73 million for FY17, the same as FY16. The majority of funds from the program go directly to states and local communities for on-the-ground restoration projects.