Maryland Joins Chesapeake TMDL Suit, Highlighting Split Among Bay States

摘要

Maryland is preparing to enter the ongoing litigation over EPA's landmark total maximum daily load (TMDL) cleanup plan for the Chesapeake Bay as an amicus supporting the agency, a move that will put states subject to the plan on opposite sides of the suit for the first time, after West Virginia joined an earlier brief arguing that the TMDL is illegal. "As we continue to make great strides in restoring and protecting the Chesapeake Bay, it is critical that we protect our hard-won progress. As a result, I have asked the Attorney General to submit an amicus brief to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in support of the Environmental Protection Agency's defense of the Chesapeake Bay TMDL," Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) said in a Feb. 12 press release.