WASHINGTON, DC – Representatives Rob Wittman (VA-01), Bobby Scott (VA-03), and John Sarbanes (MD-03), all co-chairs of the bipartisan Chesapeake Bay Watershed Task Force, issued the following statement after the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) announced the inaugural slate of awards for the Chesapeake Watershed Investments for Landscape Defense (Chesapeake WILD) program issuing12 grants totaling $3.5 million.
“The Chesapeake Bay is one of America's greatest treasures and restoring the watershed is vitally important. The announcement of the first Chesapeake WILD grant awardees is great news for the Chesapeake Bay and all those who call the 64,000 square mile watershed home. These projects leverage the on-the-ground expertise of regional, state, and local partners to conserve land; enhance resilience; restore critical habitat, including wetlands; and make recreational experiences more accessible to the public. The projects funded by these grants will also reduce nutrient and sediment pollution, improve water quality and help restore the Chesapeake Bay.”
This funding was made possible by the Chesapeake WILD Act, which was introduced by Reps. Wittman, Scott, and Sarbanes in the 116th Congress.
The Chesapeake WILD Act was included in the America’s Conservation Enhancement (ACE) Act (Pub. L. No. 116-118), which President Trump signed into law at the end of 2020. Prior to being signed into law, Congressman Wittman managed suspension debate for the ACE Act, which was arguably the most important piece of environmental legislation for the Chesapeake Bay, national wetlands, and fish habitats, in the past twenty years. Click here to learn more.
