North, Chesapeake Beach Earn Sustainability Stars
Chesapeake Beach and North Beach have more going for them than great views. Calvert County’s Twin Beach towns are certifiably sustainable, meaning they live up to standards set by the University of Maryland. As well as the Twin Beaches, 11 other Maryland towns joined the Sustainable Maryland community this year.
Each town has its own advances up the 150-point ladder of certification.
Chesapeake Beach earned points for cleaning up Fishing Creek … partnering with the Chesapeake Beach Oyster Cultivation Society … creating pollinator and mosquito-repellant gardens … setting up monitoring cameras on osprey nests … supporting a series of nature walks … and focusing the Beach Elementary School Beach Bots robotics team on reducing home waste.
“Sustainability is woven into the fabric of the town of Chesapeake Beach and is actively preserved with continued outreach efforts,” said Mayor Patrick ‘Irish’ J. Mahoney.
Sister town North Beach’s sustainable achievements include securing funding to complete a 60-foot living shoreline at Walton Beach Nature Preserve … adding solar panels at the public works building and a green roof on town hall … creating the 30,000-square-foot Sunrise Garden to bring people in touch with nature and art … and hosting public events on the waterfront.
“As a town located on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay, we have always been acutely aware of our responsibilities toward the environment,” said Mayor Mark Frazer.
Thirty-nine of Maryland’s 157 municipalities have achieved certification by Sustainable Maryland (www.sustainablemaryland.com), an initiative of the Environmental Finance Center at the University of Maryland to support towns and cities in finding cost-effective and strategic ways to protect their natural assets and revitalize their communities.
“In a time when municipal leadership is critical to driving change across social and environmental issues, we are pleased to see municipalities throughout Maryland continue to do the hard and necessary work to be good stewards of their communities,” said program manager Mike Hunninghake.