Accounting for Growth of Chesapeake Bay Pollution

Efforts to Save the Chesapeake Bay go back 50 years. Most recent effort is the “Bay TMDL” (2010-) The Bay’s primary problem is the dead zones: eutrophic waters caused by too much nutrient pollution So, the TMDL sets a cap at how much Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sediment the Bay can receive. Can’t just reduce pollution from the 5 main sources, you also must deal with new pollution. One of the boldest parts of the TMDL was this accounting for growth “expectation” from EPA. Because it pushed the envelope from a policy standpoint, most states have not taken it seriously. The right administration might just push the policy through – MD almost did in 2014 We can show them how to do it and what it would mean (e.g., disincentive to clear forest).

Project Report