Along with summer swimming comes ShoreRivers Bacteria Monitoring season. It is advised that people not swim 24-48 hours after a major rain.

Every summer, ShoreRivers deploys a team of community scientists to monitor bacterial levels at popular swimming and boating sites, providing vital information on human health risks to the public. Their samples are then processed, according to standard scientific protocols, in ShoreRivers’ in-house labs. The program follows the Environmental Protection Agency’s standard protocols for collecting and analyzing samples. It makes the results of that testing public, informing people about current bacteria levels as they plan their recreational activities in our waterways. Results are posted every Friday, between Memorial Day and Labor Day, at shorerivers.org/swim and on both the organization’s and its individual Riverkeepers’ social media pages.

A second page, shorerivers.org/swimmable-shorerivers-espanol, was established in 2023 to share this program with the Spanish-speaking community. Additionally, 14 signs can be found at public sites around the Eastern Shore that explain the goals of the Swimmable ShoreRivers program and indicate where users can find weekly results in both English and Spanish. These signs (and the program at large) are made possible thanks to funding from the Cornell Douglas Foundation, and ShoreRivers’ Riverkeepers will continue working with local county officials to install more.

Isabel Hardesty joined ShoreRivers in 2011, and has served as executive director since 2021.

ShoreRivers, a leading environmental organization dedicated to protecting the Eastern Shore waterways, announced that Executive Director Isabel Hardesty has resigned, effective at the end of this year.

Marian Fry, chairperson of the ShoreRivers governing board, expressed mixed emotions about Hardesty’s departure, noting her significant contributions to the organization’s growth and impact.

“Although she will be greatly missed, we wish her well in her future endeavors,” Fry said, adding that the board is actively seeking a strong candidate to succeed Hardesty and that a job announcement will soon be posted on the ShoreRivers website.

In an accompanying note to supporters, Hardesty reflected on her 14-year tenure with ShoreRivers, describing her decision to step down as bittersweet but necessary for her personal and professional growth.

“I am excited, happy, nostalgic, and sad all at once, but mostly energized by the prospect of change,” she wrote. “We are in an incredible period of stability and impact, which is why I feel confident this is a good time for me to launch my next phase, and for ShoreRivers to have a fresh perspective at the helm.”

In the note, Hardesty looked back fondly on the organization’s achievements, including its 2017 merger of legacy organizations, legislative wins, expanded educational programs, and a focus on inclusive community engagement alongside clean water initiatives.

Under Hardesty’s leadership, ShoreRivers evolved by adding capacities in communications, human resources, finance, and databases to the organization as it operated under a robust strategic plan.

“Elected officials recognize us during the general assembly, and the ShoreRivers brand is trusted, beloved, and in it for the long haul,” she wrote, and attributed its success to the staff, board, and, above all, supporters.

Hardesty began her career at ShoreRivers in 2011 as policy director and later served as Chester Riverkeeper, Regional Director, and Deputy Director before becoming Executive Director in 2021.

“Although she will be greatly missed,” Fry wrote, “and we wish her well in future endeavors, the board is already working to find an excellent candidate as her successor.”

Looking ahead, Hardesty plans to consult part-time with Due East Partners on strategic planning and leadership while spending more time with her family. She said she is committed to a smooth transition and will work closely with the board to identify and onboard a new director.

“I want to thank each and every one of you for making this organization and this job wonderful and impactful,” she wrote, encouraging supporters to keep an eye on the ShoreRivers website for updates on the leadership search.

ShoreRivers is pleased to announce the addition of three new members to its Governing Board: Jack Broderick, Ann Swanson, and Loribeth Weinstein. As a grassroots nonprofit organization, the hard work and support of board members is imperative to the organization’s efforts for thriving rivers on the Eastern Shore. ShoreRivers extends deep gratitude for the wise counsel, encouragement, and vision of these exceptional community members. See the full list of Board members at ShoreRivers.org/leadership.

These new voices will bring a wealth of expertise to ShoreRivers, including equal opportunity and civil rights, social and economic justice, grantmaking and local governance, and environmental policy and conservation. Paired with a deep commitment to clean water and healthy Eastern Shore communities, these new members will strengthen the organization’s robust science-based advocacy, restoration, and education efforts.

Jack Broderick is a retired federal manager and long-time community activist and leader on Kent Island who serves on numerous local and state boards and committees, including the Maryland 250 Commission and the Bay Bridge Reconstruction Advisory Group. A former Captain in the U.S. Army, he retired in 2021 as the Director of Equal Opportunity for the National Guard Bureau, U.S. Department of Defense, after 34 years of combined Federal military and civilian service. Broderick lives on Cox Creek and enjoys crabbing, fishing, hunting, and generally spending time on the water.

The former Executive Director of the Chesapeake Bay Commission, Ann Swanson, has spent four decades as a leader in Chesapeake Bay restoration and been recognized for her work on a regional, national, and international scale. Swanson was the catalyst for the early formation of the Chester River Association and the Sassafras River Association — two of ShoreRivers’ legacy organizations. In recognition of that, and her tireless efforts on behalf of the Bay, and its landscapes and communities, she was the winner of ShoreRivers’ inaugural Award for Environmental Stewardship in 2019.

Loribeth Weinstein spent her career at the helm of non-profit and philanthropic organizations addressing issues of gender parity and social and economic justice. Now retired, she served for two decades as the CEO of Jewish Women International, an organization committed to protecting the rights of women and girls, and is a founder of the Washington Area Women’s Foundation, a philanthropic organization that has provided more than $16 million in grants to organizations in the Washington D.C. region since 1999. She has a love of Eastern Shore waterways that inspired her to deepen her commitment to environmental stewardship, and is also a Master Gardener.

In addition to its new members, the Board also recently elected its Executive Committee for 2025, which consists of Marian Fry, Chair; Barbara Boyd, Vice Chair; Frank Lewis, Treasurer; Maura Bollinger, Secretary, and Gene Lopez, At-Large.

ShoreRivers also celebrates several long-time Board members whose terms end this year: Meta Boyd, Bruce Abel, Ron Rothman, and Philp Webster. The organization is incredibly grateful to each of them for their years of dedicated service and invaluable contributions.

The Perdue AgriBusiness soybean processing plant in Salisbury, MD, added machinery without a permit, leading to more air pollution, according to the Maryland Department of the Environment.

Two major agricultural companies ramped up operations recently on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, and the environment paid a price, according to the Maryland Department of the Environment.

One case involves the agency’s second-largest cash penalty in its history while the other has reopened a long-running pollution saga that local environmentalists hoped had been resolved.

Perdue’s plant, situated a couple blocks away from its parent company’s headquarters, extracts the oil from soybeans to be used in cooking, among other uses.

Perdue applied for a permit in 2017 but withdrew the application the following year after MDE indicated it would require additional review. The company went ahead anyway with the installation of the new machinery in September 2017, followed by a second round in May 2019, according to the settlement agreement.

After the plant’s expansion, the hexane emissions, state officials say, exceeded the 40-ton annual threshold to be considered a new “major source” of pollution, MDE alleged. Hexane is a volatile organic compound, a major ingredient in ground-level ozone that can worsen an array of breathing problems from asthma to emphysema, experts say.

MDE records show annual VOC emissions increased at the facility by 28% from 2017 to 2019, from 246 tons to 315 tons.

“Everyone must follow the rules which are in place to keep Marylanders safe. When Perdue failed to comply, it was the community who suffered the undue burden, so there must be meaningful penalties,” said Attorney General Anthony Brown. “I am glad that Perdue has accepted responsibility and will be investing in the surrounding neighborhoods moving forward.”

The settlement calls for Perdue to pay an $8 million fine to the state. The only larger civil penalty in MDE’s history was the $29 million settlement in 2018 with Volkswagen over the auto manufacturer’s installation of “defeat devices” on certain vehicles, aimed at circumventing emissions tests.

Perdue also must install $3.5 million in pollution-reduction measures at the plant, including electrifying diesel-fired equipment, and contribute $400,000 to Salisbury for a tree planting campaign in areas with poor canopy coverage.

In separate press statements, the two sides left a muddled picture about when and how the problem came to light. MDE’s legal complaint says that agency staff and Perdue representatives “met at various times” to discuss the cause of the emission increases. It wasn’t until correspondence on April 11, 2022, however, that Perdue “finally admitted” it had installed the equipment without a permit, MDE alleged in a legal complaint.

Meanwhile, Perdue spokeswoman Kate Shaw said in a statement that “The discrepancy was discovered in May of 2020, as part of our air permit renewal process.” Her statement doesn’t indicate who discovered the discrepancy or whether state inspectors were aware of it at the time. She added, “We take full accountability for what occurred. The individuals who did not reapply for the permit are no longer with the company.”

When asked for clarification via email, Bill See, another Perdue spokesman, replied, “Our original statement stands on its own.”

In a separate case, MDE charges that Darling Ingredients, owner of the Valley Proteins poultry rendering plant in Dorchester County, has violated its October 2022 consent decree. Under that settlement, Darling Ingredients agreed to pay $540,000 to the state while fixing wastewater and stormwater problems at the troubled plant.

“I would say this facility is in no better shape than it was in 2021 when we filed the lawsuit,” said Matt Pluta, the Choptank Riverkeeper and director of riverkeeper programs at ShoreRivers, one of the environmental groups whose lawsuit triggered the decree. “In fact, it’s probably gotten worse.”

A few months after the settlement was signed, MDE renewed the plant’s discharge permit, allowing a nearly four-fold increase in the amount of wastewater it can release into the Transquaking River, a nutrient-impaired Chesapeake Bay tributary. Environmentalists had pushed MDE to impose tougher limits and not let the company expand until showing it could meet them, but the agency didn’t do so.

Problems have piled up since that approval. MDE inspectors say they uncovered 51 violations of the decree’s requirement to maintain at least 2 feet of freeboard – the distance from the surface of the wastewater to the top of the holding pits. In May, MDE announced plans to fine Darling $15,000.

The Texas-based company formally contested the fine, arguing that all the exceedances fell under an exception in the decree for lagoon levels to rise because of heavy rainfall.

MDE also contends that the plant has been hauling away production waste from the lagoons without going through the complete treatment process. Farmers use the material, known as “dissolved air flotation,” to fertilize their fields. But in adjoining Caroline County, the practice has sparked an outcry from neighbors about foul odors and prompted county commissioners to enact a moratorium on its storage.

Darling representatives have told the state they believe their current permit allows the hauling to continue. Ongoing upgrades to the wastewater treatment plant, required as part of the 2022 decree, will substantially reduce, if not eliminate, such hauling, they say.

“We have responded to the MDE and share its commitment to resolving this issue through the established MDE process,” Darling spokeswoman Jillian Fleming said in a statement.

The agency notified Darling in June that it was referring the hauling matter along with other recent violations to the state Attorney General’s Office.

By Jeremy Cox