An Annapolis Environmental Tragedy - A Failure of Government

As a longtime resident of the Annapolis Neck and the community of Annapolis Roads, I am appalled by the lack of any substantial action by either Anne Arundel County or the State of Maryland on this significant environmental and quality of life issue in the past year.

The Annapolis region has a twenty-seven-acre construction site underway by the @Keyschool for the past thirteen months in the community of Annapolis Roads on property that was previously a 9-hole golf course.

Key School's construction site is destroying the lower Annapolis peninsula’s environment as a result of more than ten large scale sediment laden run-off events. Each one of these events has been documented with multi-media, measurements and then sent in report form to both the relevant County and the State agencies.

Highly sediment laden and polluted water (old golf course soil is laden with heavy metals) runs into Lake Ogleton through Annapolis Roads affecting all communities that border that pristine estuary. It also runs into the City of Annapolis where sediment laden runoff from the north side of the #Keyschool site drains into Back Creek.

This high-speed, brown water run-off has destroyed parts of Annapolis Roads 33 acre Ogleton Woods conservation easement which the community purchased 15 years ago and is responsible for maintaining. (The largest older growth woods on the Annapolis Neck) After the runoff passes through Ogleton Woods, its filling up Lake Ogleton navigation channels with sediment which then exits into the Chesapeake Bay.

With first hand involvement documenting each run off event for the government report filings, my opinion is that it’s been a colossal failure of both the County and State governments to stop this environment assault. After most rain events, the Maryland Department Environment cites numerous code violations after the Annapolis Roads community files the reports.

The County (who has primary responsibility) does nothing other than “slap on the wrist” measures that have no consequence and the run-off continues unabated with every one inch or greater rain storm. It’s inconceivable to me and the surrounding affected communities that no action has been taken to stop this degradation of the Annapolis Neck environment for over twelve months now.

It also creates large concerns over continuing high speed run off after the construction is completed because of large impervious surfaces and a clearly inadequate drainage system.

What will it take for AA County Executive Steve Schuh and Governor Hogan to show environmental leadership on this serious threat to highly valuable Annapolis forests and wetlands as well as Lake Ogleton, Back Creek and the Chesapeake Bay?

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