Anne Arundel Watershed Stewards Academy Honors Two For Works

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Each year the Anne Arundel County Watershed Stewards Academy honors volunteer Master Watershed Stewards and the environmental professionals who support their action for clean water. According to a news release, the Master Watershed Steward of the Year is awarded to a Steward who excels in engaging their community to reduce pollution. The Consortium Member of the Year is awarded to an environmental professional who makes a significant impact on projects for clean water.

The Master Watershed Steward and Consortium Member of the Year Awards were presented at WSA's annual "Spring into Action" conference on Feb. 23 at Northeast High School in Pasadena.

Master Watershed Stewards are citizen leaders who engage communities to reduce polluted runoff. To become certified, Stewards complete an intensive, research based, hands-on training including a capstone project in their community. Stewards work with neighbors, businesses, schools and houses of worship to install projects such as rain gardens or conservation landscapes that capture polluted runoff. Collectively these actions add up to better health for our local waterways.

The WSA Consortium of Support Professionals is composed of over 80 governmental, non-profit and business professionals who provide technical assistance to Master Watershed Stewards as they move their communities to action.

Master Watershed Steward of the Year Award

Master Watershed Steward Amy Clements was honored for her dedication to clean water and her leadership as president of the Spa Creek Conservancy. Clements became a Master Watershed Steward in WSA's first certification course in 2009. Under her leadership, Spa Creek Conservancy installed over $10 million in restoration projects — from treating 98 percent of the runoff from Heritage Baptist Church to restoring whole streams in projects like the Spa Creek Headwaters Restoration.

In addition to restoration, Clements continually engages her Annapolis community. She led residents of Eastport Terrace and Harbor House to plant and mulch 200 trees and shrubs behind the Annapolis Housing Authority and Bates Middle School, then re-engaged the community for a Kids on the Creek day to reconnect youth to the water.

WSA Consortium Member of the Year Awards

Beth Ginter was awarded Consortium Member of the Year for her work with the Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional (CBLP) Certification. The CBLP certification teaches the professional landscape community to properly design, install and maintain rain gardens and conservation landscapes. In just a few years, Beth has certified over 400 CBLPs, creating a network of sustainable landscaping professionals spanning five states across our watershed. Beth was joined on stage by a dozen certified CBLPs many of whom are also WSA Consortium members.

About WSA: The Anne Arundel County Watershed Stewards Academy develops citizen leaders, Master Watershed Stewards, to promote community change for clean waters. Master Watershed Stewards take action with their neighbors to address the problem of storm water pollution and restore local waterways in Anne Arundel County. Since 2009, Anne Arundel Watershed Stewards Academy has certified over 220 Master Watershed Stewards from Brooklyn Park to Herring Bay. Collectively, those leaders have installed over 2,500 projects from rain barrels to stream restoration and engaged over 135,000 Anne Arundel County neighbors to learn and take action to clean our waterways.

More information on the Anne Arundel County Watershed Stewards Academy may be found at aawsa.org.