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Highlights of the Chesapeake Bay watershed implementation plans

In 2010, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency established a cleanup plan for the Chesapeake Bay known as the Total Maximum Daily Load or “pollution diet.”

It established the maximum about of nitrogen and phosphorus “loads” that could reach the Chesapeake Bay each year while allowing it to maintain water quality safe for aquatic life. Specific goals were assigned to each state and major river in the watershed and states have been working since 2010 to achieve those goals. On April 12, each area released draft plans showing how they plan to achieve remaining nutrient reductions by the 2025 deadline. View highlights of the watershed implementation plans here.