Bill would charge developers less for pollution

Developers might get a break from the proposed Chesapeake Bay Green Fund that would charge them by the square foot for construction that contributes to polluting storm-water runoff.

The bill, sponsored by House Environmental Matters Committee Chairman Maggie McIntosh, D-Baltimore City, originally called for a $2 impervious-surface fee to be charged to developers for every square foot of impervious surface constructed outside state-established growth areas, and 25 cents per square foot for surfaces added inside those areas. “Impervious” means water can?t penetrate and, therefore, becomes runoff.