MORGANTOWN, Md. – Roll up your pants and lace up your sneakers with members from the Lower Potomac Tributary Team on Sunday, June 24, from 2 to 5 p.m. as they host their ninth annual Wade-In at the Mirant Mid-Atlantic Morgantown Power Plant. There is no fee for the event, which will take place rain or shine.
In what has become an annual event for each of Maryland’s 10 Tributary Teams, the Wade-Ins are inspired by former State Senator Bernie Fowler, who began wading into the Patuxent River 17 years ago with family and friends to highlight concerns about declining water quality in Maryland’s tributaries and the Chesapeake Bay. Senator Fowler remembered that as a child, he could wade into the Patuxent and easily see his shoes. The event became known as a “wade-in” and is characterized by participants wading into a stream, river or the Bay, and measuring the point at which they can no longer see their shoes (commonly known as the Sneaker Index). Fowler challenged the other nine Tributary Teams to host Wade-Ins or similar water quality awareness events of their own.
The Lower Potomac Watershed is comprised of Charles and St. Mary’s Counties, and a small portion of Prince George’s County that makes up the headwaters of Mattawoman Creek and Zekiah Swamp. Other major waterways within the watershed include the St. Mary’s, Port Tobacco and Wicomico Rivers, Breton Bay, St. Clement Bay, and Nanjemoy Creek. The area is characterized by forest and agriculture; however, it is experiencing growth faster than any of the other major watersheds in the state. Managing agricultural run-off and reducing the impacts from the increasing amount of developed lands are high priorities for the Lower Potomac Tributary Team.
Since 1995, Maryland’s Tributary Teams have assisted with the implementation of the State’s watershed-based plans to reduce nutrient pollution to Maryland’s rivers and the Chesapeake Bay. Support for the Tributary Teams is provided by staff at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR); however the members are volunteers whose tireless energy results in invaluable contributions to restoration efforts. The Wade-Ins are just one of the ways the Teams highlight local water quality and get their communities involved.
On the day of the event, please call (410) 260-8988 for directions or if you have questions.
Directions from Baltimore: Take I-95 South to I-695 East. Exit onto I-97 South; follow to the exit for Route 50 West. From there, go to Route 301 South toward the Governor Nice Bridge. Take the last left before the tollbooth and look for the Wade-In signs.
Directions from DC: Take Route 50 East to Route 301 South towards the Governor Nice Bridge. Take the last left before the tollbooth and look for the Wade-In signs.