At D.C. Environmental Conference, Watershed Realizations

Good gardening practices, such as replacing steep slopes with terraces, protect the Chesapeake Bay watershed. (By Sandra Leavitt Lerner For The Washington Post)

The Chesapeake Bay remains in trouble -- the latest Chesapeake Bay Foundation "State of the Bay" report gives the nation's largest estuary a grade of D, or 27 points out of 100 (100 being the pristine condition it was in when Capt. John Smith first laid eyes upon it, according to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation).

While some of the dozen or so factors the report measures show improvement, others are down or barely holding steady. Oysters and shad are more plentiful, but rockfish continue to decline. Water clarity is unchanged, but levels of the polluting nutrients nitrogen and phosphorus are up. Underwater grasses are recovering, but wetlands and forest buffers are static.

But what can you do about it? How can one person improve conditions in a body of water that covers more than 4,000 square miles, from Havre de Grace, Md., to Virginia Beach?

There are numerous steps each of us can take. If you don't know what they are or can't summon the energy to get involved, you might be able to gather some inspiration at a conference being held this weekend in Washington.

The 2006 D.C. Environmental Conference: Stewardship for the Chesapeake Bay Watershed began yesterday and runs through tomorrow on the campus of the University of the District of Columbia.

The idea for the program originated with Greg Drury, executive director of Wholeness for Humanity, a local group that espouses holistic health care and related topics. The conference is a joint effort between his group and the federal Environmental Protection Agency; it includes other non-governmental groups that have an interest in the health of the bay and its watershed.

Conference speakers include government representatives, university professors, landscape professionals, golf-course managers, business owners, medical professionals, members of faith-based groups and representatives of environmental organizations.

"The idea is to bring together a wide range of communities and groups that share the same concerns but in the normal course of events wouldn't have the opportunity to talk to each other," said Ed Brandt, of the Environmental Stewardship Branch of the EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs. "Or, if they did communicate, it was informal, with no structure to build future action."

Those who attend the conference will learn to teach others about environmental stewardship, he said. The thinking is that the more individuals care for the environment, the better the chance they will encourage others to care. This conference is the beginning of centralizing efforts "to lead by example," Brandt said, in showing people that it is our ethical responsibility to care for all elements that are necessary to our existence.

Brandt's hope is that getting intergenerational teams involved in projects will lead to continued mentoring and sharing.

"One of the real goals is to network," Brandt said, meaning not just among those in the audience, but also among the speakers.

According to Brandt, there are two major areas where individuals can have a personal impact on the environment: landscaping and transportation. The conference includes three sessions on landscaping and at least two on bicycling and "clean" transportation.