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Our Impact

Home / What We Do /

Our Impact

Our impact spans the 64,000-square mile Chesapeake Bay watershed.
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Our Achievements

Achievements completed in 2024

Partnered to Establish the Southern Maryland Woodlands National Wildlife Refuge

Earl Conservation Center

Partner to Create McNew Community Gardens

Chesapeake National Recreation Area Takes Critical Step Forward

Initiative to Help Establish the Phoebus-Fort Monroe Coalition

Honor 2024 Champions of the Chesapeake

Partnered to Produce an Updated mapping of Maryland’s Habitat Connectivity Network

Significant Funding for Stream Restoration in Pennsylvania

Maryland Meets 30% Land Conservation Goal Six Years Ahead of Schedule

National Parks Subcommittee of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee (ENR) Holds Hearing on the CNRA Bill

America’s Conservation Enhancement Act (ACE) Passes Senate

Story Map Released Which Documents 65 Sites of Black Historical Significance

Two Segments of Turtle Creek Delisted from the Agriculturally Impaired Streams List

EXPLORE Act Passes House of Representatives

Passage of Maryland’s Whole Watershed Act

Advocating for the First National Wildlife Refuge in Maryland in 26 years

Annapolis Acquires Dr. Moore Property, Adjacent to Elktonia Beach

Girl Scout Troop Protects East Marlton Forest

2023

NDAA Provision Passed to Help Protect Greenbury Point

Partner to Expand West Virginia Park Along Shenandoah River by 82 Acres

Celebrate 10th Anniversary of the Conservation Innovation Center

Introduction of the Chesapeake National Recreation Act

Create First of Its Kind Chesapeake Bay Watershed Solar Mapping & Prediction

Partner to Host Environmental Career Symposium for Charles County, Maryland, Students

Strengthening Forest Conservation Regulations in Maryland

Passage of the Maryland the Beautiful Act

Successful Advocacy for Maryland’s Greenspace Equity Program Legislation

Formalize Partnership with Susquehanna University

Partner to Create Artificial Intelligence Deep Learning Model for Mapping Wetlands Yielding 94% Accuracy

2022

Advocate for Successful Outcomes in FY 23 Federal Spending Package

Support Maryland’s Most Comprehensive Tree Study

Celebrate Advocacy Efforts that Led to Draft CNRA Legislation

Join Bay Bridge Run as Official Charity Partner

Partner to Conserve 300 Acres along Susquehanna River & Expand Parks

Grant to Implement Strategy to Rapidly Restore Agriculturally Impaired Streams in Central Pennsylvania

Awarded Grant to Support Development of Infrastructure to Attract Tourists to Cambridge, Maryland

Momentum Built for the Chesapeake National Recreation Area

Released Very High- Resolution Land Use/Land Cover and Change Data

Partnered to Develop New Sandy Point State Park Nature Center with Bilingual Interpretation

Awarded “Partner of the Year Award” by the Maryland Park Advisory Commission

Successfully Advocated for Conservation Finance Act, the First Such State Law in the Country

Partner with Rappahannock Tribe for their Acquisition of Sacred Land

Advocate for Successful Passage of the Great Maryland Outdoors Act

Partner with Blacks of the Chesapeake to Conserve Historically Black Beach, Will Become City Park

Advocate for Successful Conservation Outcomes in FY 22 Federal Spending Package

Second Data Scientist Joins Conservation Innovation Center

Growing Greener Grant Will Boost Rapid Stream De-listing Effort

TeraWulf Charitable Foundation Supports Efforts to Establish Chesapeake National Recreation Area

2021

Partner to Create Online Tools for Landowners

Work with Universities & Partners to Plant Forest Buffer

Memorandum of Understanding with the Bureau of Land Management

Partner to Preserve 270 Acres in Wicomico County

High-Resolution Land Cover Data Produced for the EPA’s Chesapeake Bay Program Used for Anne Arundel County Executive Green Infrastructure Master Plan

Partner with Hispanic Access Foundation on Public Access Survey of Voters

Conservation Innovation Study on Carbon Sequestration in Virginia

Partnered to Highlight James River Water Quality Achievements

Opened Oyster House Park with Partners in Seaford, DE

Partnered to Create Nanticoke Crossing Park

Partnered with Charles County to hire two student interns from Morgan State University

Issued Joint Report, “Private Conservation Finance Critical to Restoring the Chesapeake Bay”

Joined Partners to Welcome Department of Defense Secretary Hicks to the Middle Chesapeake Sentinel Landscape

Launched New Initiative with Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf and Partners to Restore 30 Agriculturally-Impaired Streams by 2020

Issued New Report on Solar Siting for St. Mary’s County

Partnership Conserves 318 Acres in Dorchester County

Partnered to Create First Map of Ground-Mounted Solar Arrays

Admitted into the 2020-2022 Large Landscape Peer Learning Initiative

2020

Successful Advocacy for Conservation Outcomes in FY21 Federal Appropriations

First Phase of New Park Project in Seaford Begins

Celebrated 2020 Champions of the Chesapeake

Empowering Water Data Monitors with Technology

Issued New Report on Solar Citing for Baltimore County & City

Released Virtual Tours of Tangier Island and Pocomoke River

New Book Includes Chesapeake Trail

Passage of America’s Conservation Enhancement Act

Using data to create an illustrative and interactive digital platform for endangered fish species

Launched Partnership to Advocate for Chesapeake National Recreation Area (CNRA)

NFWF Grant Awarded for Precision Conservation in Pennsylvania

Launched “Chesapeake Conversations” Podcast

Co-hosted with Lincoln Institute of Land Policy: Earthshot: Democratizing Data to Protect 30% of the Planet by 2030

Released Study on Park Mobility during COVID-19

Identified Land Essential to Drinking Water Safety

Partnership Conserves 438 Acres in Wicomico County

Chesapeake Conservancy Applauds Senate Passage of the Great American Outdoors Act

Partnership for the National Trails System Case Study on Conservation of Fones Cliffs

Chesapeake Conservancy: Launching the Conservation Innovation Center featured in a Harvard Business School Case Study

2019

Chesapeake Conservancy Receives US Forest Service 2019 Regional Forester’s Honor Award

Successful Partnership Expands Quiet Waters Park

Celebrated 2019 Champions of the Chesapeake

Provide Tree Canopy Analysis for Anne Arundel County, MD that Helped Inform a Recent Change in the Law

Successful Partnership to Add 4665 acres to the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests in the James River Watershed

New AI Scientist Joins Conservation Innovation Center to Accelerate Precision Conservation Efforts

Partnership Adds Easement Acreage to Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge

Launch of New Paddle Website for the Susquehanna River with the National Park Service

Launch Bilingual Ranger Program at Sandy Point State Park in Partnership with the National Park Service

Awarded 4-Star Charity Navigator Rating for the Second Year

Successful Designation of Mallows Bay-Potomac River as the Chesapeake’s First National Marine Sanctuary

Introduction of the Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails Network Reauthorization Act of 2019

Conservation of Farmland in the Nanticoke Rural Legacy Area

Advocated for Permanent Reauthorization of the Land and Water Conservation Fund

Successfully Advocated for Full Funding of Maryland’s Program Open Space

Chesapeake Conservancy Develops Technology for James River Restoration Work

2018

EPA Awards $1.1 Million to Chesapeake Conservancy to Track Environmental Impacts of Land Use in Bay Watershed

Partnership Conserves Wildlife Habitat for Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge

Chesapeake Conservancy Awarded 4-Star Charity Navigator Rating

The National Park Service and Chesapeake Conservancy Release the Short Film “Werowocomoco: Protecting a Powhatan Place of Power”

Celebrated 2018 Champions of the Chesapeake

Partner to Create New Waterfront Park in Seaford, DE

Advocate for Fones Cliffs in Virginia where Lawsuit was Filed Against the Developer

Partner to Create Thriving Monarch Butterfly Habitat

UMBC and Chesapeake Conservancy to Create Detailed Stream Maps of Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Launched Virtual Tour of Patuxent River

Find Your Chesapeake GeoTour® Launch

Successfully Advocated for Federal Funding for Chesapeake Bay Restoration, Land Conservation and Public Access

City of Norfolk and Chesapeake Conservancy Dedicate Captain John Smith Cross Marker

Created New Technology to Help the Public Answer: How Healthy Is the South River?

Navy, State of Maryland and Nonprofits Partner to Conserve Land in Dorchester County

Applauds Open Space and Land Conservation Funding at the State Level and Advocating for Federal Funding for the Chesapeake Bay

2017

Celebrated 2017 Champions of the Chesapeake

Demonstrated Use of Cloud-Based Computing for Conservation Audience of 16,000

Featured in Microsoft Video Demonstrating Precision Conservation

Donated Ancestral Land to Rappahannock Tribe

Released Vision Document for Susquehanna River Conservation

Participated in Microsoft Earth Day Panel

Showcased Future of Conservation with Elk Creek Restoration Project

Awarded “Partner in Excellence” by Virginia Environment Endowment

Accepted by 1% for the Planet Network

Released Tool for Precision Conservation in Pennsylvania

Advocated for Best Management Practices in the Watershed as Part of Comprehensive Sediment Mitigation Efforts

Pushed for Legislation Supporting Key Chesapeake Bay Programs

Celebrated Federal Funding for Conservation and Public Access

Advocated for Clean Water Commerce Act of 2017

Osprey Photo Documentary Named Green Earth Book Award Honor Winner

Partnered to Improve Stream Mapping for the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Joined Local Grocer Supports Susquehanna Restoration

Launched Roving Ranger

Commemorated Grand Opening of Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center

Joined Greater Baltimore Wilderness Coalition to Host Green Opportunity and Job Fair for Baltimore Youth

Celebrated Milestone toward National Marine Sanctuary Designation for Mallows Bay – Potomac River

2016

Completed Chesapeake Bay High-Resolution Land Cover project for the Chesapeake Bay Program

Celebrated the Permanent Protection of Werowocomoco

Allowed Visitors to Virtually Explore the Chesapeake’s Great Rivers and Special Places through Interactive Tours

Celebrated 2016 Champtions of the Chesapeake

Designed Web Tools to Increase the Pace and Efficiency of Conservation in the Chesapeake

Celebrated the 100th Anniversary of the National Park Service and the 10th Anniversary of the John Smith Chesapeake Trail with Find Your Chesapeake Video Series

Released Online/Mobile-Accessible Boater’s Guide to the John Smith Chesapeake Trail

Advocated for the Governor and the General Assembly to Restore Cuts to Maryland’s Program Open Space

Crowdfunded to Launch Third Wildlife Webcam Featuring Great Blue Herons

Provided Virtual Connection to Chesapeake’s Wildlife for Fourth Straight Year

2015

Developed Park Finder: Baltimore, a Web-Based Walkability Application

Lead Non-Profit for the Rivers of the Chesapeake Collaborative Proposal which Led to Nearly $11 Million for Land Conservation and $2 Million for Public Access in the FY 2016 Federal Budget

Celebrated 2015 Champions of the Chesapeake

Partnered with Organizations Seeking National Marine Sanctuary Designation for Mallows Bay – Potomac River, 2014-15

Led the Successful Effort to Designate the Nanticoke as a Sentinel Landscape

Started of Virtual Tour of the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail

Advocated for the Expansion of Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, 2011-15

Inclusion of $38 Million in the President’s FY16 Budget for Land Conservation in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Collaborated with the USDA’s RCPP Partnership to Receive $5 Million in Federal Funding for Land Conservation in the Delmarva Peninsula

Launched Peregrine Falcon Webcam at Transamerica Building in Downtown Baltimore

Relaunch of the Popular Osprey Camera, 2013-15

2014

Provided Advocacy and Support for the Designation of the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Historical Park in MD and the Harriet Tubman National Historical Park in NY

Celebrated 2014 Champions of the Chesapeake

Co-hosted Chesapeake Climate Data Hackathon

Hosted the National Conference on Large Landscape Conservation

Additional Access Site for the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail at Caledon State Park

Department of Defense REPI Grant for Land Conservation in the Nanticoke River Corridor

Launched the Chesapeake Conservation Partnership with NPS

Joined with White House, Intel on Climate Data Initiative

Expansion of Maryland Wildlands Program to Include an Additional 22,000 acres of Sensitive State-Owned land

2013

Designation of Masonville Cove as Nation’s First Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership

Establishment of Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument

Passed Legislation in Maryland to Promote Safe and Reasonable Canoe, Kayak and Fishing Access along Maryland’s Bridges and Roadways

2011 & 2012

Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail Expanded by 840 Miles of Connecting Component Trails, 2012

Published A Boater’s Guide to the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail, 2011

Establishment of Fort Monroe National Monument, 2011

2009 & 2010

Launched the Star-Spangled Banner Geotrail, 2010

Provided Advocacy and Education Support for Protection of the Jesuit Lands, 2010

Published Conserving Chesapeake Landscapes report, 2010

Developed President Obama’s Chesapeake Bay Protection and Restoration Executive Order #13508, specifically the conservation and access goals, 2009

2006 & 2008

U.S. Department of the Interior, states of Delaware and Maryland, and the Chesapeake Conservancy signed an agreement to work together to protect the Nanticoke River.

Completed the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail Connecting Trails Evaluation Study

Establishment of the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail, 2006

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The Chesapeake Conservancy is a non-profit tax-exempt charitable organization (EIN: 262271377) under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations are tax-deductible as allowed by law.

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Earl Conservation Center
1212 West Street
Annapolis, MD 21401
(443) 321-3610
EIN: 262271377
CFC: 27293

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Our impact spans the 64,000-square mile Chesapeake Bay watershed.‍

Our Achievements

Our impact spans the 64,000-square mile Chesapeake Bay watershed.
‍