In 2022, Gunpowder RIVERKEEPER® joined Blue Water Baltimore and others in filing suit against the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE), arguing that the state’s General Permit for industrial stormwater discharges failed to adequately protect water quality. As a result of this advocacy, MDE voluntarily withdrew the permit to allow for additional public input. However, after a lengthy pause in the litigation while it received that additional input, MDE re-issued the Permit without fixing any of the underlying problems. So, we are pressing on with our case. Most recently, our attorneys at the Chesapeake Legal Alliance filed the opening briefs in this case in late July, MDE recently filed their response in October, with the final reply brief will be submitted just before Thanksgiving.
Because of the 116 industrial facilities that discharge into the Gunpowder, Bush, and Middle River watersheds, we believe that MDE should strengthen the protections legally required to safeguard our waters.