Patuxent Gets D-Minus In First River Health Test

The comprehensive data also could be useful in supporting efforts to obtain more state and federal funding to help clean up the river, Dennison said.

"We've met the enemy of the bay, and it is us. We have to solve the problem," he said.

Calvert has taken steps to preserve about 30 percent of its land from development to keep the rural landscape and prevent runoff.

"We are sensitive to water and the environment, because we are surrounded by water. We can solve a portion of the problem, but the biggest issue is . . . going to require a concerted effort along that whole river to clean it up," said Wilson H. Parran (D-Huntingtown), president of the Calvert Board of County Commissioners.

The 110-mile Patuxent River is the longest intrastate waterway in Maryland. It drains more than 950 square miles of land in Howard, Montgomery, Anne Arundel, Charles, Calvert and Prince George's counties.

To volunteer to perform water quality tests, call 301-249-8200 or go tohttp://www.paxriverkeeper.org.