The Chesapeake Bay would join a list of America's preeminent natural resources under a draft bill pushed by members of Congress.
, both Maryland Democrats, said Monday they intend to introduce legislation in the next Congress that would incorporate the bay into the nation’s park system and elevate its status as one of the nation’s most important landscapes, thus easing the way toward obtaining steady federal funding to conserve the body of water, promote tourism and expand public access within its 64,000 square miles of watershed.
or a spit of land in Hampton, Va., where enslaved Africans first arrived by boat in colonial America — as public embarkation points to explore the bay’s cultural, historical and ecological riches.Van Hollen, quoting an early proponent of the idea, envisioned the land-based circle of destinations as “a string of pearls that will tie key areas of the Bay watershed together.”
“This place, the Chesapeake, is the birthplace of American identity,” Dunn said. “It’s just as spectacular as Yellowstone or Yosemite, and it’s as great as the Great Smokies or as grand as the Grand Tetons. ... But, despite all that amazing nature, culture and history, it’s not represented in the park system.”
“It’s a way to introduce ourselves to the world,” said Johnny Shockley, a third-generation waterman whose life embodies the transition from backbreaking work hauling oysters from the bay to cultivating them using high-tech and sustainable methods.
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