Residents warn federal rollbacks and agency layoffs threaten Chesapeake Bay wildlife and local preparedness

Nancy Zierfoss, a St. Mary's County resident, told commissioners that recent federal policies and agency cuts could weaken the nation's ability to respond to extreme weather and harm public lands and wildlife. "NOAA is a vital data resource on everything from hurricanes to droughts," Zierfoss said, adding that layoffs and policy changes worry her. Zierfoss cited a sequence of federal actions she said remove references to climate change in federal agencies, relax emissions regulations, and expand timber harvesting and road construction on national forest lands. She told the forum that those moves, combined with staff cuts at the National…