{"id":2310,"date":"2019-05-03T20:19:04","date_gmt":"2019-05-03T20:19:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/waterkeeperschesapeake.org\/?post_type=projects&p=2310"},"modified":"2025-11-25T11:38:20","modified_gmt":"2025-11-25T16:38:20","slug":"chesapeake-bay-tmdl","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/waterkeeperschesapeake.org\/es\/chesapeake-bay-tmdl\/","title":{"rendered":"Plan de limpieza de la bah\u00eda de Chesapeake"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The first multi-state agreement to clean up the Chesapeake Bay dates back to 1983. But by 2008, after three more agreements, the region was still decades away<\/a> from the goal of restoring the Chesapeake Bay. Recognizing that the Chesapeake Bay was a national gem that needed federal support, President Obama signed an executive order<\/a> in 2009 directing agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to help the Bay states restore clean water.\u00a0That same year, the\u00a0Chesapeake Executive Council<\/a>\u00a0set short-term restoration goals\u2014called two-year milestones\u2014to hasten restoration and increase accountability.<\/p>\n

Chesapeake Bay TMDL and Watershed Implementation Plans<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In 2010, the EPA established the landmark\u00a0Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL)<\/a>. The\u00a0Chesapeake Bay TMDL<\/a>\u00a0set limits on the amount of nutrients (phosphorous and nitrogen) and sediment that can enter the Bay and its tidal rivers to meet water quality goals. These limits are often referred to as a \u201cpollution diet\u201d or a \u201cpollution budget.\u201d<\/p>\n

To restore the Bay, we need to\u00a0reduce<\/a>\u00a025% of the nitrogen loads, 24% of the phosphorus and 20% of the sediment. While the Bay TMDL sets the target, it\u2019s still up to the states to decide how to get there. Each state writes a series of\u00a0Watershed Implementation Plans<\/a>, with the tools and best management practices that will reduce its pollution load to meet the Bay TMDL pollution reductions by 2025. Federal, state and local governments coordinate through the Chesapeake Bay Program<\/a> partnership to develop the WIPs. The third WIPs<\/a> were issued the spring of 2019.<\/p>\n

Still Much Work to be Done to Meet Targets<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The\u00a0dead zone in the Chesapeake Bay\u00a0is most pronounced in the deep waters of the Bay’s main stem during warm summer months. The average size of the dead zone is approximately 1.89 cubic miles, or nearly the volume of 3.2 million Olympic-size swimming pools.\u00a0Between 1985 and 2010,\u00a0the duration of the dead zone fell from five months to four, suggesting efforts to manage nutrient\u00a0pollution\u00a0through upgrades to wastewater treatment plants, cuts to vehicle and power plant emissions, and reductions in runoff from farmland are working. While rainfall and weather patterns affect the development of the dead zone, nutrient pollution is the foremost factor in its growth.\u00a0In addition to dead zones, excess nutrients in the water and the resulting algae blooms can result in the production of algal toxins and strange tastes and smells in drinking water. One of our priorities to the relicensing of the Conowingo Dam<\/a>,\u00a0a hydroelectric dam that has been trapping sediment from the Susquehanna River, blocking fish passage, and affecting the water quality of the Chesapeake Bay since it was built in 1928. Nearly 200 million tons of sediment pollution have accumulated behind the dam. During major floods caused by large storms, powerful floodwaters can scoop out or \u201cscour\u201d the stored sediment behind the dam and send that downstream to the Chesapeake Bay.<\/p>\n

Throughout this process, our focus has been on the cleanup and restoration of our local waterways<\/strong>, including taking actions to guarantee effective TMDLs for local waterways and to guarantee Watershed Implementation Plans that are accountable, funded and meet restoration goals.<\/span><\/p>\n

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