Republican lawmakers across the nation are attacking LGBTQ+ rights

Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill is one of many Republican-backed measures across the country that aim to curb LGBTQ+ rights. Last year, 17 anti-LGBTQ laws passed in state legislatures in eight states.

Harpers Ferry rock climbers worry closures could set precedent for future access

HARPERS FERRY, West Virginia – “This is not how the Park Service is supposed to work.” That’s according to Eric Murdock, policy director for the Access Fund, a rock climbing advocacy organization that has worked with land managers all over…

Chesapeake farmers target runoff reduction, lawmakers seek conservation funds

MIDDLETOWN, Maryland — A gaggle of excitable white turkeys gobbled and clucked in their pen at Open Book Farm on a chilly afternoon in late October. Most days, the birds roamed free in one of the farm’s pastures, scratching and…

The Washington Bullpen, Episode 7

On this week’s episode, hosts Julia Karron and Jarod Golub discuss the resolved teachers strike in West Virginia, Gary Cohn’s resignation, and the new WMATA M shop with fellow reporter Julia Lerner.

Pipeline protesters take frustrations to Hogan’s doorstep

Scores of environmentalists gathered Thursday night in Annapolis to protest a “Potomac Pipeline,” citing inaction on the part of the state in properly vetting the environmental impact of a project that would transport fracked natural gas under the Potomac River.

Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay defenders hold breath, wait on Senate

WASHINGTON — If the Senate does not restore a deep, House-passed cut in federal funding to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay Program, the ripple effect on Maryland conservation efforts could be far larger than what the state would lose…

Ornery, ugly and wild – turkeys you won’t look forward to seeing

COLLEGE PARK, Maryland – With numerous reports of wild turkeys infiltrating urban areas of New England, will Maryland be next? You have to wonder, given the birds’ increasing attraction to the bright lights of the big cities, the approach of…

360-degree river maps: Tool for travelers, environmentalists

The Chesapeake Conservancy, in collaboration with 360-degree mapping company Terrain 360, are creating a virtual riverview tour of the Patuxent River. Terrain 360 founder, Ryan Abrahamsen, was out on his custom pontoon boat mapping the river Sept. 26.

Hogan sues EPA over neighboring power plant pollution

COLLEGE PARK, Maryland — Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced a lawsuit Wednesday against the federal Environmental Protection Agency for failing to enforce limits on air-pollution control at 19 mostly coal-fired power plants in five states upwind of Maryland. “We want…

Threats mount against Chesapeake Bay conservation efforts

After years of steady progress for Chesapeake Bay clean-up efforts, the conservation outlook is increasingly bleak for the country’s largest estuary—and the state that depends on it most, Maryland—says bay advocates.