The State

of the Chesapeake Bay

and ItsWatershed

A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region CBP/TRS 273/05

EPA 903-R-04-009

December 2004 www.chesapeakebay.net
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed

The Chesapeake Bay Program, formed

in 1983 by the first Chesapeake Bay

agreement, is a unique regional partnership guiding the restoration of the

Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.

The Bay Program partners include

the states of Maryland, Pennsylvania

and Virginia; the District of Columbia;

the Chesapeake Bay Commission, a

tri-state legislative body; the U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency

(EPA), which represents the federal

government; and participating advisory groups. Delaware, New York and

West Virginia, representing the Bay’s

headwaters, also participate in Bay

Program water quality restoration

activities.

Chesapeake Bay Program

410 Severn Avenue, Suite 109

Annapolis, Maryland 21403

(800) YOUR BAY

Recycled/Recyclable—Printed with

Vegetable Oil Based Inks on Recycled

Paper (30% Postconsumer)

Printed by the

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

for the Chesapeake Bay Program

To read this report online and link to

more information on the State of the

Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed, visit

www.chesapeakebay.net/SOTB04
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004 1

The majestic Chesapeake Bay is the

heart of the mid-Atlantic region. From

early Native Americans to today’s

visitors and residents, people have

stood in awe of the astonishing beauty

and plentiful resources provided by the

Chesapeake and its surrounding lands.

Today, however, the Bay and its watershed are in peril and require immediate

attention. This report on the health of

the Bay watershed presents current

efforts to restore what the U.S. Congress

has called our “national treasure.”

Your Bay

and ItsWatershed
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed 2

To learn more about your

part of the Bay watershed,

visit Watershed Profiles at

www.chesapeakebay.net/wspv31
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004 3

- that includes parts of six states —

Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West

Virginia — and all of the District of Columbia. Billions of gallons

of water flow each day through our backyard streams and rivers and,

eventually, into the Chesapeake Bay. 

The Bay is an estuary — a place of transition between the land and

the sea, where incoming fresh water mixes with salty ocean water.

The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in North America

and is an extremely productive ecosystem, home to more

than 3,600 species of plants and animals.

The Chesapeake Bay watershed

covers an enormous 64,000-

square mile area A Watershed Defined: A watershed is

the land area through which water

flows and drains to the lowest point,

into a stream, river, lake or estuary.

A watershed may be large or small,

may occupy sloping, mountainous or

nearly flat terrain and cover many

landscapes, including forests, farmland, small towns and cities. Human

activities in a watershed eventually

affect the water quality downstream.

Chesapeake Bay Watershed

State boundaries

Chesapeake Bay and Rivers

NEW YORK

PENNSYLVANIA

WEST VIRGINIA

MARYLAND

NEW

JERSEY

VIRGINIA

DC DELAWARE
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed 4

A Stressed Ecosystem

For centuries, people have settled throughout the Bay’s watershed and

harvested its bounty. The Bay and its rivers provide drinking water for

millions, pathways for commerce, robust fish and shellfish industries,

and recreation. As people have taken advantage of these resources,

they have forever changed the Bay.

Today, the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed are in danger. Although

it has provided for us for hundreds of years, the Bay now needs help

from every citizen in the watershed. 

Each small part of the Bay region is interconnected. Streams flowing

through the Chesapeake’s headwaters are linked to the blue crab

hiding among underwater grasses in its shallows. Natural corridors

throughout the watershed connecting wetlands, forests and streams

provide important habitat. These forests and wetlands hold nutrients

and sediment in place and reduce the amount of runoff flowing into

small creeks and streams. As they are destroyed to make room for

roads and buildings, their ability to hold back pollutants and the

important habitat they offer are lost as well.

A complex network of rivers and streams, beginning at the

Chesapeake’s headwaters hundreds of miles away, carries fresh

water into the Bay. These waterways also carry pollution, and by

the time they reach the Chesapeake, the accumulated pollution

load can be enormous.
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004 5
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed 6

Bay restoration partners know that we have forever changed the

watershed’s landscape. Now, in the face of a growing population, we

must work to manage the natural systems of the Bay and its watershed

to bring them back into balance.

The Chesapeake Bay region states have joined forces with the federal

government to restore and protect the Bay and its watershed. This

partnership, called the Chesapeake Bay Program, was created in 1983

to help coordinate restoration efforts across state boundaries. Over the

Bay Program

Partnership

Working to Restore the Chesapeake
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004 7

past 20 years, scientists, resource managers, community organizations,

local governments, farmers, watermen and other citizens have come

together to work toward securing a brighter future for the Chesapeake.

Restoration effort is ongoing, and we need your help. We must be

diligent in protecting and restoring the Bay, so that our children and

theirs—and many generations to come—will be able to enjoy the

splendor of this national treasure.
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed 8
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004 9

Nutrient and SedimentPollution Edging Down Monitoring data collected throughout the watershedshow that, in some of the Bay’s major tributaries, theconcentrations of nitrogen, phosphorous and sedimentflowing into the Bay are decreasing. These charts use flow-adjusted data, which are‘normalized’ to account for seasonal and year-to-yearvariability in weather patterns. Flow-adjusted data helpresource managers better assess the effectiveness ofland-based pollution reduction actions.

S

S

S S

S

S

N

N

N

N N

P

P

P

P

P P

S N P

S N P

S N P

S N P

S N P

S N P

S N P

S N

N

P

Nitrogen Phosphorus Sediment

N

N

PPP

S

S

S

N

1980s – 2003

Decreasing trendNo significant trendIncreasing trend

The State of the Chesapeake Bay andits Watershed provides a snapshot ofthe Bay’s health. This section of thereport gives a brief overview of someof the key indicators Bay experts relyon to assess the health of the Bay andits watershed. Where possible, thisreport shows how these indicators areinterrelated and interconnected withinthe watershed.

Want to Learn More?For more information on eachindicator, we include a directlink to the Chesapeake BayProgram website. By followingthe links, visitors to thewebsite can explore issuesin depth and access the dataused to compile the report.Many of the indicatorsincluded in the followingpages are updated and postedon the Bay Program websiteas new data are availablethroughout the year.

For a full list of the indicators used in thisreport, visit the State of the ChesapeakeBay and its Watershed section of theChesapeake Bay Program’s website, atwww.chesapeakebay.net/SOTB04

The State of the 

Chesapeake Bay

and ItsWatershed www.chesapeakebay.net/sediment.htm

www.chesapeakebay.net/nutr1.htm
Oyster populations in the Chesapeake have been decimated by disease,

intense harvest pressure and poor water quality.www.chesapeakebay.net/american_oyster.htm

-0.50-1.00-1.50

2.001.501.000.500.00

1968

1971

1974

1977

1980

1983

1986

1989

1992

1995

1998

2001

2003

Spawning Female Index Average

Blue Crabs at Risk

0

80604020

180160140120100

1984

1985

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

Bay Grasses (x 1,000 acres)

Restoration Goal (185,000 acres by 2010)

Bay Grasses Show Annual Variation

0

605040302010

1982

1983

1984

1985

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

SSB (females ages 4+ years, millions of lbs.)

2003

Baywide Female Spawning Stock Biomass

Fishing moratoria:

MD & DE: 1985-1990

VA: 1989-1990

Rockfish Population Stable

50

40353025201510

1953

1955

1957

1959

1961

1963

1965

1967

1969

1971

1973

1975

1977

1979

1981

1983

1985

1987

1989

1991

1993

1995

1997

1999

2001

Commercial Landings (million lbs) Virginia Maryland

2003

Oysters at Historic Lows Wetlands Being Restored

0

800600400200

140012001000

1989

1991

1993

1995

1997

1999

2001

2003

Cumulative Miles of River Habitat Opened Opened, but not yet to Migratory Fish Opened to Migratory Fish 1998 Goal – 731 miles 2003 Goal – 1,357 miles

Migratory Fish Habitat Expanding Dissolved Oxygen Levels Dangerously Low in Summer

0

900080007000600050004000300020001000

10000

1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003

Cumulative Miles Restored Riparian Forest Buffers 59% Not Buffered With Forest 41%

Current 2010 Goal: 10,000 miles(established 2003)

Initial 2010 Goal: 2,010 miles(established 1996)

Forest Buffers Sprouting Up

Total

Restored

57%

Total

Remaining

43%

Wetlands Restoration Program Achievement

PA Goal: 4,000 acresRestored: 930 acresPercent Achievement: 23%MD Goal: 15,000 acresRestored: 12,593 acresPercent Achievement: 84%VA Goal: 6,000 acresRestored: 794 acresPercent Achievement: 13%

Improved water quality and habitat restoration efforts alongwith proper management of the crab harvest are needed torestore the Bay’s blue crab populations.www.chesapeakebay.net/blue_crab.htm

Reductions in the pollutants flowing into the Bay are neededto help underwater bay grasses. Annual variations in bay grassesshow the sensitivity of the Bay ecosystem. Note: Orange area ofbar includes estimated additional acreage. No survey in 1988.www.chesapeakebay.net/baygras.htm

Wetlands are a valuable piece of the Bay’s ecosystem. They filterand capture pollutants, provide wildlife habitat, protect shorelinesand reduce flooding.www.chesapeakebay.net/wetlds1.htm

Streamside forests prevent pollutants from entering therivers of the watershed by soaking up nutrients andtrapping sediment.www.chesapeakebay.net/forestbuff.htm

Removing blockages in the watershed’s rivers allowsmigratory fish to return upstream to spawn. Slowly,migratory fish are returning.www.chesapeakebay.net/fishpass.htm

Rockfish have rebounded but concerns remain overdisease, food sources and availability of spawning habitat.www.chesapeakebay.net/striped_bass.htm

The extent and duration of low oxygen levels in the deeper waters of the Bay varywidely depending on the amount of rainfall, temperature and pollution levels.www.chesapeakebay.net/do.htm

1985

1986

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

Volume (1012 liters) below 5 mg/L

Volume of Mainstem Bay Lower Layer Waters with Reduced Oxygen

(June – September Average)

86420

1816141210

2004

HypoxiaSevere HypoxiaAnoxia

2.0 – <5 mg/L0.2 – <2 mg/L0 – <0.2 mg/L

Worse

Better
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed 12

Appomattox

Rappahannock

Patuxent

Middle

Northeast

Tangier Sound

Patapsco Upper Chester

Sassafrass

Bohemia

Back

Chickahominy

Middle Choptank

tat

us

ble

Mouth of Choptank

Wicomico

Gunpowder

Lower Choptank

MattawomanCreek

Eastern Bay

Meets

Borderline

Fails

Bay Grass Habitat

Requirement

Attainment Status

(2001-2003)

Trend

(1985-2003)

DegradingImproving

Segments withunchanged trendshave no symbol

Meets

Borderline

Fails

Not Available

Bay Grass Habitat

Requirement

Attainment Status

(2001-2003)

Trend

(1985-2003)

DegradingImproving

Segments withunchanged trendshave no symbol Not Available

Mixed Trendsin Algae Levels Chlorophyll a — a pigment foundWater ClarityImprovementsNeeded In KeyHabitat AreasWater clarity is critical tothe health of underwatergrasses that provideimportant habitat formany Bay animals.

in plants — is measured to determine the amount of algae present in the water. 

s

Habitat

ment

t Status

003)

rline

vailable

Mouth of Choptank

Potomac

Elizabeth

 Upper James

Appomattox

Rappahannock

Patuxent

Wicomico

Piankatank

Mobjack Bay

Middle Mainstem Bay

Lower Mainstem Bay

Rhode

West

Pocomoke

Northeast

Little Choptank

Nanticoke

Fishing Bay

Manokin

Tangier Sound

York

Pamunkey

Patapsco

South

Bohemia

Sassafrass

Upper Chester

Mattaponi

Back

Bush

Gunpowder

Chickahominy

Upper Choptank

Lower Choptank

Piscataway Creek

MattawomanCreek

Corrotoman

Upper Central Mainstem Bay

C&D Canal

Nutrient Pollution –Too Much of a Good Thing When too many nutrients reach theBay, they fuel large algae blooms that,in turn, block sunlight and deplete theoxygen in the water as the algae dieand decompose. Without sunlight,underwater bay grasses cannot grow.Without oxygen, blue crabs and fishcannot live. As underwater baygrasses die off, important habitat forfish and shellfish is lost. As blue crabpopulations decline, larger fish, suchas rockfish, have fewer food sources.Each small part of the Bay ecosystemis connected. If one part is out ofbalance, the entire system suffers.

www.chesapeakebay.net/status.cfm?sid=80www.chesapeakebay.net/status.cfm?sid=119
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004 13

Nutrients and Sediment

Harming the Bay

Nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorous, are the key pollutants harming the Chesapeake Bay. In small quantities, nutrients aren’t

harmful. In fact, a healthy ecosystem needs nutrients for plants to grow

and animals to flourish. But too many nutrients have disastrous effects.

Nutrients enter waterways through numerous paths. Rainwater carries

fertilizer from lawns and farm fields. It washes small particles of dirt

and oil from roadways and sidewalks, and erodes unprotected stream

banks. Nutrients come from many sources, such as lawn fertilizer,

sewage treatment plants and septic systems, farm fields and even the

air. The largest contributors of nutrients to the Bay are agriculture,

atmospheric deposition (nutrients entering the Bay from the air),

wastewater treatment plants and runoff from developed, urban lands.

Sediment, what many of us refer to as dirt, also is harmful to the Bay.

It is carried into waterways by stream bank and shoreline erosion and

rainwater runoff. Sediment clouds the Bay’s water and limits the light

needed for underwater bay grasses to grow.

The amount of nutrients and sediment flowing into the Bay must be

reduced to restore healthy water quality for the Bay’s living resources.

Bay Program partners are working together to develop comprehensive

solutions, referred to as tributary strategies, for reducing nutrient

pollution.

For more information on the impacts

of nutrients on the Bay ecosystem, visit

www.chesapeakebay.net/nutr1.htm
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed 14
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004 15

Examining the Bay’s Health

over the Long Term

The Chesapeake Bay is a dynamic system, and conditions within

the Bay fluctuate from year to year, month to month and even day

to day. With time, this complex system will respond to our restoration

efforts, from pollution reductions and fisheries management to

habitat restoration.

Examining data over time helps scientists understand natural variations as well as the long-term effects of restoration efforts. All of the

data provided in this report reflect the Bay’s health over the course

of many years, and in some cases, decades.
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed 16

Assessing a Vast Watershed

Bay scientists have found that actions on land, even hundreds of miles

upstream in the headwaters, affect the Bay’s living resources downstream.

Understanding the effects of management actions, as well as their

relationship to the rest of the Bay ecosystem, requires a complex set

of tools. As a result, Bay scientists rely heavily on a collection of water

quality monitoring data and computer modeling.

Bay Program partners regularly collect water samples throughout the

Bay’s mainstem as well as from its rivers and streams. Scientists analyze

these samples to understand the current and long-term health of the

Bay and its rivers.

These data are then combined with other information, such as historic

hydrologic conditions and management actions, and used to create

computer models of the Chesapeake and its watershed. These computer

models help scientists better understand the likely effects of management

actions on the Bay’s health. They also help scientists gain a better understanding of how the Bay works.

Computer models are used to evaluate management strategies and

projected long-term progress toward restoring a healthy Bay, while

monitoring data help us determine whether we’re successful. Bay

Program partners track more than 100 indicators of restoration

progress and Bay watershed health; 89 of these use monitoring

and tracking data, and the rest rely on computer modeling.
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004 17

When viewed together, what do all of these data and analyses tell

Bay scientists about the health of the Chesapeake and its watershed?

The Chesapeake Bay is a complex, sensitive and dynamic ecosystem.

As a result, it is impossible to define the current state of the

Chesapeake Bay in short, simple terms. No single chart tells the

whole story.

Some areas of the Chesapeake and its watershed are improving.

For instance, the number of streams with restored forested buffers –

a vital management practice that slows the flow of harmful nutrients

and sediment into streams and the Bay – is increasing. Rockfish are

common in many areas of the Bay during summer months. On the

other hand, critical species such as oysters and blue crabs are at or

near historically low levels because of disease, harvest pressures,

degraded habitat and poor water quality conditions.

Long-term monitoring data trends indicate that some progress has

been made in stemming the flow of harmful nutrients into the Bay.

Nearly 100 wastewater treatment plants have been upgraded to

limit nutrient pollution. Similarly, more than three million acres

of cropland have pollution-fighting nutrient management plans in

place. But while we are making some progress, we still have a very

long way to go. In 2003, near-record rains washed massive amounts

of pollution into local waters and the Bay, resulting in record losses

of Bay grasses and a huge increase in the volume of low-oxygen

waters during the middle of the summer. Only after we have slashed

nutrient and sediment levels far below current levels will we have

a Bay ecosystem healthy and resilient enough to withstand these

natural variations in weather.

Restoring the Bay

A Work in Progress
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed 18

Progress toward Meeting

Nutrient and Sediment

Goals Limited

The Chesapeake Bay Program

Watershed Model provides program

managers with a way to estimate the

nutrient and sediment reductions that

will likely occur as pollution abatement

practices are implemented throughout

the watershed. These reduction estimates also provide an indication of the

pollutant load that would flow into the

Bay in an “average year.” Using the

model, managers can project the

future response of various management actions put in place today.

Model estimates and water quality

monitoring observations both indicate

some limited progress has been made

toward meeting watershed-wide

nutrient and sediment reduction goals.

However, much more needs to be

done. To meet the dramatically tougher

pollution reduction goals set in 2003,

we must slash nearly twice as much

nitrogen from the waters flowing into

the Bay as has been eliminated since

1985, according to model estimates.

Steep reductions in the amount of

phosphorus and sediment flowing

into the Bay also are needed.

While model estimates

allow us to assess restoration actions, the ultimate

success of Bay restoration

will be measured by the

health of the Bay’s living

resources. (For more

information on the Bay

Watershed Model, see

“Assessing a Vast

Watershed”, page 16.) 0

5

10

15

20

25

30

1985 2000 2002

Phosphorus Load (millions lbs/yr)

2010

Phosphorus

Goal

2010

Nitrogen

Goal

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

1985 2000 2002

Nitrogen Load (million lbs/yr)

2010

Sediment

Goal

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

1985 2000 2002

Sediment Load (millions tons/yr)

www.chesapeakebay.net/

status.cfm?sid=186
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004 19

0

5

10

15

20

25

195019601970198019902000201020202030

Chesapeake Basin Population (millions)

Estimated

Confronting the Bay’s Challenges

While important advances have been made over the past few decades

in understanding the Chesapeake and implementing restoration

programs, much more work remains to be done. The Bay watershed’s

population grows by 100,000 each year, and development pressure

is intensifying. We must make many difficult decisions, right now.

Communities must decide how to stem the tide of nutrients and

other pollutants flowing into the Bay as their populations grow

and the demand for housing, roads and other development increases.

Finding innovative ways to install best management practices on city

streets, in wastewater treatment plants and on farms continues to be

a challenge. In addition to improving the way we manage our lands,

we must improve the way we manage our living resources and take

into account the way they interact with the entire Bay ecosystem.

Chesapeake Bay

Watershed Population

Increasing

Since 1950, the Bay watershed’s

population has doubled to about 16

million people. As the population of

the watershed grows, so does our

footprint on the landscape. In the past

decade, population increased by

about 8 percent, while the amount of

impervious surface increased by 41

percent, representing an area five

times the size of the nation’s capital.

Managing future growth will be

critical to preserving gains made

during the first two decades of Bay

restoration efforts. 

www.chesapeakebay.net/land.htm
The State of the Chesapeake Bay and Its Watershed 20

Even the smallest

contributions can add up to big changes for the health of your local

waterways and the Chesapeake Bay. The Bay restoration partners

have a clear plan for restoring and protecting the Chesapeake and

its watershed – Chesapeake 2000. Citizens must take part in

implementing this plan. Students can work with their teachers to

implement schoolyard and neighborhood restoration projects.

Community groups can team up with local conservation organizations to restore their local streams. Businesses can find ways to

reduce their impact on their communities.

You Can Help.

Each citizen in the Bay watershed

plays a part in this effort.
A Report to the Citizens of the Bay Region 2004

For more information on how you can

get involved in your community to help

restore the Bay and its rivers, visit

www.chesapeakebay.net/involved.htm

Credits/Production Notes:

Design: 818 Studio, Inc.

Illustrations: Wood Ronsaville Harlin, Inc.

Photography: Many of the images included

in this report were provided by the National

Park Service’s Chesapeake Bay Gateways

Network, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS),

the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the Paynter

Labs. Additional photographs courtesy of

Middleton Evans, Starke Jett, Mike Land,

Russ Mader, Dr. Kent Mountford and

Chris Spielmann.

Looking to the Future

We must remember that humans have been influencing the Bay

and its watershed for hundreds of years. The Bay cannot be restored

overnight. Bay scientists are helping us understand the problems

facing the Chesapeake, and Bay Program partners are working on

an ambitious effort to restore the watershed. But it is only through

the dedicated work of everyone living in the Bay watershed,

sustained over time, that we can restore the majestic beauty

and bounty of the Chesapeake Bay.

Chesapeake Bay

Gateways Are Your

Chesapeake Connection

Chesapeake Bay Gateways are points

of entry into the Chesapeake Bay’s

rich life and culture, where you can

experience the history that shaped

our nation, from the earliest European

settlements and the War of

Independence, through the Industrial

Revolution, the Civil War and into

the 21st century. Chesapeake Bay

Gateways reveal the Bay’s hidden

treasures and tell its stories. Through

its parks, wildlife refuges, maritime

museums, historic or archaeological

sites and water trails, each gateway

provides a place to enjoy, relax,

explore and learn more about the

Chesapeake Bay.

Visit www.baygateways.net to

learn more about Chesapeake Bay

Gateways and to plan your own

Chesapeake Bay journey.
Chesapeake Bay Program

410 Severn Avenue, Suite 109

Annapolis, Maryland 21403

(800) YOUR BAY

www.chesapeakebay.net