Water pollution inspections, enforcement see ‘dramatic’ decline in Maryland, report finds

Environmental groups like the Center for Progressive Reform have been watching the story unfold for years, said policy analyst Katlyn Schmitt. Over the past two decades, the number of water pollution inspections in Maryland have trended downward, as have the number of corrective actions taken against facilities that broke the rules — by dumping excess contaminants into state waterways, for instance. But during the last several years, under Republican Gov. Larry Hogan’s administration, the groups were noticing some “dramatic” declines.