Blue Water Baltimore

Did you know that this coming week is Winter Salt Awareness Week? Each day there will be livestreams from experts diving into different perspectives on the true cost of salt on our drinking water and freshwater ecosystems, how you can be a freshwater advocate in your community, and more! Learn more at www.wintersaltweek.org. #SaltWeek #WinterSaltAwareness2025 #BeSmartNotSalty

This week we received a report from a hawk-eyed community member about some red mystery goo floating in the Jones Falls, with a strong smell of fuel. We alerted the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) who dispatched an investigation team, and determined that the spill is approximately 5 gallons of either home heating oil or diesel fuel. The icy conditions in the stream make it unsafe to deploy on-site catchment booms, but MDE is tracking the pollution and is prepared to use absorbent materials downstream to catch the oil/fuel.⁠ ⁠ Thanks to this community member, the Jones Falls is a little bit cleaner and safer today. We couldn’t do this work without folks like you. Use our online pollution reporting hotline to keep us in the loop, and find more info about who to call for environmental emergencies at https://lnkd.in/gHpygtH4.

Blue Water Baltimore welcomes residents in and lovers of the Herring Run watershed to an online conversation and listening session on Wednesday, 2/5 from 6:30-7:30 pm. During this virtual session we invite attendees to: 💧share what you love about the Herring Run 💧voice concerns about issues in the region 💧share recommendations for future water sampling locations and 💧make connections leading to collaborations. Learn more and register to attend at bit.ly/HerringRun25 We hope to see you there! 📸 : Photo courtesy of Jacob Jackson, @therealherphero

Join the Environmental Community to learn about our 2025 Environmental legislative priorities, hear from elected officials, community leaders, and connect with your neighbors about environmental issues affecting all Marylanders. Tuesday, January 28 6 PM - 7:30 PM Doors open 5:30 PM Asbury United Methodist Church 87 West Street, Annapolis, MD 21401 RSVP HERE: https://lnkd.in/eG3G3cRq

An empowering panel of local water advocates sharing their work supporting the Maryland Bottle Bill with libations for legislation. Join us alongside 5 different nonprofits, 1 local business, and 1 councilperson on an interactive panel discussion of the importance of getting the bill out of committee and into session. In our audience there will be local legislators and politicians to see how critical this bill is to their constituents. After the Q&A, we will have a small social hour and call to action; such as, signing a petition and volunteering for a lobbying day. Bring Your Own (Pint) Cup [B.Y.O.C] for a chance-to-win ticket some awesome Patagonia product. We will have drinks from Peabody Heights Brewery, and catering from Eikben! RSVP here: https://lnkd.in/eAvjEwsZ

Conductivity is the measurement of how well water conducts electricity through its content of ions. Naturally occurring ions include calcium and magnesium but urban waterways hold excess ions due to pollution and stormwater runoff. Elevated conductivity can be observed in Baltimore's streams year-round, and it spikes sharply after winter road salt is applied. The Mid-Atlantic Tributary Assessment Coalition considers conductivity levels above 544 µS/cm to be a marker for "very poor" water health. With levels in the Jones Falls spanning from 400 to nearly 3,000 µS/cm this week, our streams are hurting. Learn the best ways to de-ice after a snow at https://lnkd.in/eRWKUU_3 and check out conductivity trends at baltimorewaterwatch.org. Bacteria results from the Jones Falls this week are listed below. Lower Jones Falls, collected 1/14  1: Polytechnic High School 728 MPN 🔴 2: Lake Roland <10 MPN ✅ 3: Western Run 9,208 MPN 🔴 4: Stony Run 63 MPN ✅ 5: Clipper Mill Rd. 933 MPN 🔴 6: Falls Rd. 373 MPN 🔴 Upper Jones Falls, collected 1/15 1: Dipping Pond Run 10 MPN ✅ 2: Deep Run <10 MPN ✅ 3: Roland Run 10 MPN ✅ 4: Stevenson Rd 20 MPN ✅ 5: Falls Road 10 MPN ✅ 6: Ruxton Run 75 MPN ✅ 7: Towson Run 41 MPN ✅ MPN stands for Most Probable Number and is a statistical method used to estimate bacteria levels present in water. According to the state of Maryland, it's unsafe to come into contact with surface waters with enterococcus levels greater than 130 MPN/100 mL.

Beware of excess salt! With snow on the ground and more in the forecast, here's a few reminders to reduce the impact of salt on Baltimore's watersheds. ❄️Shovel, shovel, shovel. The less snow and ice in your path, the less salt you will need to put down. ❄️Aim for 12 ounces of salt, the size of most coffee cups, to prevent and melt ice on ten sidewalk squares. ❄️When the snow melts, sweep up any leftovers. This can be thrown away or saved and reused. If salt's left behind, runoff will pick it up and carry it to a neighboring stream. Thank you for doing your part, our waterways appreciate you!

Together, the watersheds of Baltimore encompass 194 square miles of land, 454 miles of stream and more than 1 million residents. In 2025, our water quality monitoring team's resolution will remain the same - to protect and restore the watershed and to continue the push for clean water and strong communities. We will resume monitoring and reporting out in January. Happy New Year!

Special thank you for #UMBCWBB for coming and participating in our 2024 Tree Planting Finale in Morrell Park!! We are eagerly looking to working more with #RetrieverNation and collectively building our Baltimore community If you are looking to partner, volunteer, or just interested in supporting #BlueWaterBaltimore, please DM us an/or contact us via email

Do you know what gets me down in the dumps? Illegal dumping! Take action by first submitting a report to 311 by phone or through the 311 app. Then report illegal dumping to Blue Water Baltimore at https://lnkd.in/gHpygtH4 so we can keep an eye on it!