Did you know that there are not one, but two people whose job it is to come visit your property (both agricultural and residential), discuss which best management practices (BMPs) are right for you and your land, and help you install them? Their names are Whitley Gray and Josh Biddle, and they can help with everything from rain gardens, to wetland restoration, to developing a plan to maintain BMP measures you’ve already installed. These positions are critical to help curb nutrient and sediment concentrations in the Choptank, improve water clarity and habitat, and help keep the waters safe for recreation. A 2017 report by the Chesapeake Bay Commission found that the number of technical service professionals needs to increase by 30% to meet current demand in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and increase an additional 30% from that to achieve the 2025 pollution reduction goals of the Chesapeake Bay Program.
Whitley Gray
Whitley is a world traveler, having lived in 3 countries and 11 states. She entered Iowa State University wanting to be a broadcast meteorologist but left with a strong appreciation for the interaction between people, land and water and a desire to improve that interconnection. After college, she served as an Officer in the NOAA Corps, the nation's smallest uniformed service tasked with facilitating science through the navigation of NOAA research vessels. She recently defended her Master's thesis which looked to estimate nitrogen loading from rivers in Maine to Casco Bay. Whitley’s been working with Envision the Choptank since April 2019 to assist landowners with improving their land and it's connection with the Choptank River. When she’s not working to connect landowners to the watershed, she can be found swimming, running, doing yoga, and reading. Whitley can be reached via email at wgray@eslc.org or by phone at 410.507.0542.
Josh Biddle
Josh Biddle is an Eastern Shore native. He grew up on a farm between Denton and Ridgely, and for the last 15 years has worked in his family’s greenhouses growing flowers throughout the winter and spring. Josh went to Salisbury University, receiving a BS in Biology. For the first two years out of college Josh worked as a technician at the Talbot Soil Conservation District assisting in the planning, design, and installation of a variety of Best Management Practices throughout the county. Josh now works part-time as ShoreRivers’ Agricultural Specialist and part-time as a Landowners Assistance Coordinator for Envision the Choptank. In these roles, he works with state, federal, academic, and local farm partners to perform agricultural research and restoration projects within our watersheds. He also assists with Ag-community outreach and all of our agriculturally-focused conservation programs to help promote responsible and river-friendly farming all across the Shore.Combining all his experiences, Josh has been working professionally with landowners for about 3 years now.Josh is available via email at jbiddle@shorerivers.org or by phone at 410-810-7556 ext. 277.