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Save The Chesapeake

The Chesapeake Bay is America’s largest and, we think, most beautiful estuary. Extending through six states and the District of Columbia and covering more than 4,200 square miles, the Bay adds immeasurably to the quality of life of almost 17 million people.

As we sail or jet ski along its surface, the beauty of the Chesapeake Bay remains breathtaking.  But what we can’t see is this:

 

The Bay is dying

Consider these frightening facts:

  • The population of blue crabs has plummeted from 791 million in 1990 to 260 million in 2007.  A dredge survey in the winter of 2007/2008 found the crab population had decreased by 16% in just one year!
  • Oyster harvests in recent years are only 1% of historical levels
  • In 2007, Maryland experienced 45 separate fish kills ranging in size from 50 fish to the estimated 20,000 killed in Weems Creek in Anne Arundel County.  An algae bloom that lasted for two months on the Potomac River eventually killed over 300,000 fish.

The Bay is losing its ability to support life:

  • During the heat of the summer, as much as 40% of the Bay is a dead zone with insufficient dissolved oxygen to support life.
  • Hundreds of thousands of acres of underwater grasses  have disappeared over the last century, eliminating sanctuaries where crabs and fish could hide during vulnerable periods in their life cycles 

Several types of pollution are killing the Bay:

  • High concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus continue to pour into the Bay.  These nutrients stimulate excessive algae growth which both decreases the dissolved oxygen in the water and hurts underwater grasses by reducing the sunlight they receive. 
  • Large amounts of sediment are leaching into the Bay, choking vibrant life on the floor of the Bay and reducing the Bay’s clarity so sunlight cannot reach underwater grasses
  • Toxic chemicals filter into the Bay from a multitude of sources.  A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration study found that half of the Bay bottom contains PCBs, mercury or pesticides. 

 

How Bad is It?

The Environmental Protection Agency's Bay Barometer rated the Chesapeake Bay's health in 2008 as a 38 on a scale where 100 represents a fully-restored Bay in pristine condition.  This rating is unchanged from last year's.  The all-important water quality index was rated a dismal 21, also unchanged from 2007. 

  

How Do We Save the Chesapeake?

Despite the efforts of numerous commissions and the spending of billions of dollars over the last 25 years, key water quality measures have been virtually unchanged since 1983.  There are about the same number of dead zones incapable of supporting marine life today as there were then, while the number of crabs, oysters and many types of fish living in the Bay have dramatically declined.

The Bay is in crisis.  As Governor O’Malley said:

“The time for action has passed.  The time to catch up is now.”

The pollution comes from several primary sources.  Agriculture is the largest source of nitrogen and phosphorus pollution as well as of sediment loads delivered to the Bay.  Other major pollution sources are municipal and industrial wastewater, air pollution, runoff from urban/suburban areas and septic tanks.

About 40% of the pollution reaching the Bay results from the actions of individuals -- fertilizing our yards, driving our cars, etc.  It is going to take the efforts of every one of us to restore the Bay to the healthy condition we all crave.  Learn the simple things you can do to save the Bay by joining our Bay Hero program:  

Be a Bay Hero