October 4, 2013 (BALTIMORE, MD) — In a letter to Baltimore City Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Alfred H. Foxx, the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) praised the Department’s projects to restore impervious surfaces and to protect the Chesapeake Bay.
 
“The successful completion of these restoration projects are often complex and costly and the City is commended for this significant work that is improving water quality,” wrote MDE Program Manager Brian S. Clevenger. “MDE congratulates you and your staff for the successful endeavors completed under the NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) stormwater program….”
 
This praise comes as a result of a review of the department’s NPDES municipal stormwater permit annual report, covering a period of 18 months, ending June 30, 2012. This permit mandates strict environmental controls to protect the water quality of the City’s streams and the Chesapeake Bay.
 
Baltimore City has made great strides in reducing stormwater pollutants through a variety of methods. These include street sweeping and inlet cleaning, stream restoration and impervious surface removal. Since its inception, Baltimore’s impervious surface restoration program has reached 2,472 acres, of which 139 acres have been completed in the last eighteen months.
 
Director Foxx noted: “We are very pleased to have received this commendation from the State of Maryland. DPW is committed to continued enhanced and innovative methods to improve the water quality of our streams, our harbor and the Bay. It is essential that we do this for the health of our environment and for the economic growth of our city and region.”