Publications

The data in Bay Barometer reflect the Chesapeake Bay’s health over the course of many years and, in some cases, decades. The publication offers a snapshot of the best available information from 2014 and 2015 on ecological health and our efforts to protect and restore the nation’s largest estuary, as well as our progress toward achieving the goals and outcomes of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement.

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In April 2003, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the Ambient Water Quality Criteria for Dissolved Oxygen, Water Clarity and Chlorophyll a for the Chesapeake Bay and Its Tidal Tributaries which was the foundation document defining Chesapeake Bay water quality criteria and recommended omplementation procedures for monitoring and assessment (U.S. EPA 2003a). In october 2003, EPA published the Technical Support Document for Identification of Chesapeake Bay Designated Uses and Attainability Which defined the five tidal water designated uses to be protected through the published Bay water quality criteria (U.S. EPA 2003b).

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The data in Bay Barometer reflect the Chesapeake Bay’s health over the course of many years and, in some cases, decades. The publication offers a snapshot of the best available information from 2013 and 2014 on ecological health and our efforts to protect and restore the nation’s largest estuary.

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The US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Innovative Nutrient and Sediment Reduction (INSR) grant program, managed and administered under cooperative agreement with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s (NFWF) Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund, have awarded more than $56 million to support approximately 122 conservation projects that provide innovative approaches to accelerating adoption of the most cost effective and sustainable nutrient and sediment pollution reductions throughout the watershed. These grants have leveraged over $77 million in matching funds.
The following file download provides an overview of project specific information for the INSR project grants funded from 2007 through October 2014.

The US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Small Watershed Grant (SWG) program, managed and administrated under cooperative agreement under cooperative agreement with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s (NFWF) Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund, have awarded more than $22 million to support approximately 229 conservation projects that contribute to the overall health of the Chesapeake Bay, while building citizen-based resource stewardship throughout the watershed. These grants have leveraged over $34 million in matching funds.

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New Insights: Science-based evidence of water quality improvements, challenges and opportunities in the Chesapeake compiles data collected and analyzed by Chesapeake Bay Program partners, including the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). This Executive Summary offers a top-level look at this report, which shows that our long-term efforts to reduce pollution have led to local improvements in our air, land and water.

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The Chesapeake Bay is a dynamic system. Across the watershed, rainfall, temperature and other conditions can fluctuate from month to month and year to year, impacting the surrounding environment. But tracking changes in ecological health over time allows scientists to understand these natural variations as well as the long-term effects of restoration work.

Understanding the effects of our management actions and our progress toward meeting our health and restoration goals requires a complex set of tools, from monitoring stations to computer simulations of the Bay watershed. These and other tracking tools helped produce the data in this report, which reflect changes in the Bay over the course of many years. Water quality, pollution loads and “indicators” of ecological health provide a snapshot of the Bay and its watershed and our efforts to restore it.

Full data and information can be found at ChesapeakeProgress.

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This version includes Appendices A-G. [Updated to include test drive results and re-approved by the WQGIT, 09-08-2014 ]

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Looking at data over time helps scientists understand natural variations as well as the long-term effects of restoration efforts. The data provided in Bay Barometer reflect the Bay’s health over the course of many years, and in some cases, decades. The publication provides a snapshot of the best available information from 2011 and 2012 on the Bay’s health and current efforts to protect and restore our national treasure and its watershed.

Full data and information can be found at ChesapeakeProgress.

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