Press Statement
Striped bass face growing challenges from habitat loss, low oxygen levels, and climate change as they struggle to recover from a significant decline on the East Coast, fisheries experts said this week at the Chesapeake Bay Program’s Sustainable Fisheries Goal Implementation Team fall meeting.
The availability of suitable habitat for striped bass in Chesapeake Bay is shrinking, driven primarily by higher Bay water temperatures and low oxygen levels due to climate change. Despite these substantial challenges to striped bass, a presentation from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources noted that nutrient pollution reductions made to date in the Chesapeake Bay watershed have prevented more severe degradation of striped bass habitat than would have happened without those actions.
This conclusion underscores that continued work to reduce nutrient pollution to the Bay is critical for the health of the striped bass population in Chesapeake Bay. Other experts outlined climate-induced shifts in the Chesapeake Bay fish community, with significant shifts occurring in the late 2000s.
CBF Senior Regional Ecosystem Scientist Chris Moore issued the following statement.
“Striped bass in the Chesapeake Bay face substantial threats from warmer waters and lower dissolved oxygen levels due to climate change. In the face of these challenges, it is more important than ever that state and federal partners accelerate efforts to reduce pollution to the Bay to help mitigate these impacts. Reducing pollution, improving habitat, and continuing careful management of the striped bass fishery are key to ensuring recovery of this iconic game fish.”
In a budget agreement reached this week, legislators in Virginia’s General Assembly agreed to amendments for the second year of Virginia’s two-year state budget for fiscal years 2023 and 2024.
Building on proposals made by Governor Youngkin, the General Assembly’s budget agreement would provide significant additional investment in state programs that reduce pollution to the Chesapeake Bay and rivers and streams across the Commonwealth.
Legislators reached the agreement following months of negotiations after the end of Virginia’s General Assembly legislative session in February. To become law, this budget agreement must now pass the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates in a special session and be signed by Governor Youngkin.
The General Assembly budget includes the following levels of funding for clean water programs:
- Virginia’s Agricultural Cost-Share (VACS) and related programs would receive an additional $286 million for cost-share grants to farmers who adopt important conservation practices that keep soil and fertilizer out of waterways. This amount would be in addition to the appropriation of more than $350 million over two years for these programs by the General Assembly in early 2022.
- Wastewater Treatment Plant Upgrades: Under the budget, $151 million in additional funds would be provided to sewage treatmentplants to continue upgrades that reduce nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment pollution. This amount would be in addition to the more than $70 million appropriated in early 2022 for the two-year budget period.
- Stormwater Management: The budget includes an additional $30 million for the Stormwater Local Assistance Fund (SLAF), whichprovides grants to localities for projects that reduce polluted runoff. These amounts would be in addition to the $25 million appropriated for SLAF in 2022.
- Resiliency to Storms, Flooding, and Climate Change: The budget dedicates $100 million to the Resilient Virginia Revolving Loan Fund, which provides funding and loans to local governments to help property owners finance flood resilience projects.
Chesapeake Bay Foundation Acting Virginia Executive Director Christy Everett issued the following statement.
“We’re thrilled that legislators worked together to reach an agreement that commits unprecedented levels of investment in farm conservation practices and other programs that reduce pollution to Virginia’s waterways.
“Accelerating funding for these projects is the only way Virginia will make progress toward longstanding goals to reduce pollution under the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint. This is even more important given growing challenges to Bay restoration from climate change, inflation, development, and other factors.”
“About 90 percent of Virginia’s remaining pollution reductions to the Bay must come from agriculture, making investment in Virginia’s successful agricultural cost-share program is critical. Strong investment in resiliency projects is also urgent, particularly in nature-based practices that both help communities adapt to climate change while reducing pollution and creating habitat.
“We’re grateful for the commitment and support of Virginia legislators for these programs that will lead to healthier rivers and streams and a restored Chesapeake Bay.”
(ANNAPOLIS, MD)—A recent report from the Chesapeake Bay Program highlighted the loss of trees in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Across the region, while 8,307 acres of trees were planted between 2013-14 and 2017-18, more than 25,000 acres of tree canopy was lost in community areas, which the report defines as municipalities, cities, towns, and villages.
Following the release of the report, Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) Maryland Office Staff Attorney Matt Stegman issued this statement:
“This report demonstrates that in Maryland’s fastest-growing counties we are losing forest cover. Trees and forests provide immense benefits to local communities, including reducing pollution to local waterways, sequestering carbon to help mitigate the effects of climate change, and providing shade to cool urban and suburban areas.
“CBF successfully pushed for recent updates to Maryland’s Forest Conservation Act, and we hope this report will be a wake-up call for local jurisdictions to target reforestation projects and policy solutions in places most rapidly losing canopy.”
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Editor’s note: the Bay Program release with links to the report can be found at:
Tree cover declines throughout watershed while impervious surfaces increase (chesapeakebay.net)
The Senate Appropriations Committee has finished work on a fiscal year 2024 spending bill with encouraging increases for important Bay programs and none of the devastating cuts and controversial policy riders in the House committee version. Senators voted unanimously, 28-0, to approve the fiscal 2024 Interior-Environment Appropriations bill yesterday.
The bill would fund the federal Chesapeake Bay Program at $93.5 million in fiscal 2024, a $1.5 million boost over its current budget of $92 million. It also includes the additional $46.7 million Program annual allocation authorized by the 2021 infrastructure law.
The EPA-led Bay Program coordinates the federal-state-local partnership to restore and protect the Bay and its waterways. More than two-thirds of Program dollars go directly to the six watershed states and the District of Columbia for grants to fund on-the-ground cleanup initiatives across the 64,000 square-mile watershed.
Within the Interior Department budget, the Senate Appropriations Committee measure would bump up spending on the Chesapeake Watershed Investment Landscape Defense (WILD) to $8.5 million from this year’s $8 million spending level.
The Chesapeake WILD grant program helps finance local habitat recovery projects such as restoring freshwater mussel habitat in Virginia, removing barriers to brook trout migration in western Pennsylvania, and creating new habitat for shallow water fish species on Maryland’s Kent Island.
After the bill cleared the committee, Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) Federal Director Keisha Sedlacek issued this statement:
“The Senate Appropriations Committee’s bipartisan consensus fiscal 2024 spending bill is a welcome change from the dangerous legislation the House committee produced.
“Senate appropriators wisely recognized that even when spending is tight, investing in the future of the Chesapeake Bay and its waterways will pay rich dividends for the region’s environment, economy, and more than 18 million residents.
“CBF urges the House to follow the Senate Appropriations Committee’s lead. Invest more in the Bay cleanup and drop contentious riders that will needlessly delay much-needed funds.”
A federal ocean justice strategy should identify and empower groups that work directly with disadvantaged communities and provide under-invested communities the tools to secure long-term funding in the event federal funding lapses, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) advised the Biden administration in recent comments.
CBF also called for the administration to do more research into the socio-economic impacts of climate change on marine resources and environments, and coastal communities. And CBF endorsed using federal and state environmental justice screening tools to identify coastal communities overburdened by pollution.
CBF submitted its comments to the White House Council on Environmental Quality July 24 in response to a request for information to help the administration develop “equitable and just practices to advance safety, health, and prosperity” for ocean and coastal communities around the country.
The strategy should focus on ensuring prior informed consent of Indigenous peoples and communities of color when designing and implementing resource management policies, CBF said.
It must also acknowledge that federal actions directly affect communities that depend on fishing and other ocean industries. And it must recognize the value of local and traditional knowledge of places, conservation practices, and community livelihoods and draw on that wisdom in making ocean management decisions.
Federal Director Keisha Sedlacek made the following statement about CBF’s comments:
“Too many of our region’s communities, including Black and Indigenous communities with centuries-old economic and cultural connections to the Bay and its tributaries, have borne the brunt of rapid development and discriminatory policies in fishing and other ocean industries.
“It is long past time we addressed the injustices that have devastated their livelihoods and nearly destroyed their way of life.
“CBF appreciates the opportunity to contribute to this important initiative. We look forward to continuing to work with the administration to advance equity, inclusion, and justice in coastal communities in the Bay watershed and around the country.”
The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) applauded today’s announcement that $14.3 million will benefit farms and help farmers implement conservation measures to improve water quality locally and at the Chesapeake Bay. The grants came from the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Chesapeake Bay Program.
According to the EPA, funding provided by the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), through the Most Effective Basins (MEB) grant program, is used to install forest buffers, manure storage, and fencing to reduce agricultural runoff from entering nearby streams.
In a press release, EPA said it is working with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to direct at least $3 million of the MEB funding to a block grant that will deliver conservation funding to farmers more quickly. An additional $4 million will go to the state Department of Agriculture and State Conservation Commission to support the work of the Conservation Districts.
The announcement was made in Lancaster by EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz and U.S. Senator Bob Casey.
Following the announcement CBF’s Pennsylvania Executive Director Julia Krall issued this statement:
“We appreciate the investments announced today by the EPA and Senator Casey. These grants are welcome news and will provide a much-needed federal infusion of resources to help Pennsylvania’s farmers keep nutrients on the land instead of in the water, protect herd health, and benefit family farms.
“Long-term investments in programs like Pennsylvania’s new Clean Streams Fund and Agricultural Conservation Assistance Program, which is administered by the State Conservation Commission, can go a long way toward the Commonwealth meeting its clean water commitments.
“The upcoming 2023 Farm Bill will be another important opportunity to focus additional resources on farms in Pennsylvania to help achieve water quality goals and provide economic benefits on and beyond the farm.”
The House Appropriations Committee has approved a fiscal year 2024 Interior-Environment spending bill that shields key Bay restoration programs from deep cuts but guts the overall EPA and Interior Department budgets. It also halts action on rules important to advancing the cleanup effort. The vote was 33-27.
While many environmental protection and conservation programs face draconian budget reductions under the committee bill, EPA’s Chesapeake Bay Program and Interior’s Chesapeake Watershed Investments for Landscape Defense (WILD) program were held harmless.
The bill would continue Bay Program funding at $92 million and would again allocate $8 million for Chesapeake WILD grants in fiscal 2024. It also renewed the extra $47.6 million in annual Bay Program funding provided in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
The EPA-led Bay Program coordinates the federal-state-local effort to restore and protect the Bay and its waterways. It got a $4 million boost from $88 million in the fiscal 2023 omnibus appropriations deal. The $92 million in the committee bill is in line with President Biden’s fiscal 2024 budget, which also called for level funding.
The Chesapeake WILD grant program helps finance local habitat restoration projects such as restoring freshwater mussel habitat in Virginia, removing barriers to brook trout migration in western Pennsylvania, and creating new habitat for shallow water fish species on Maryland’s Kent Island.
However, the House Appropriations Committee measure contains numerous provisions to block an array of other Biden administration initiatives and regulations, including programs to promote environmental justice and fight climate change, and rules needed to help restore the Bay and its tributaries.
The committee bill would deny EPA funding to finalize the “Good Neighbor” rule, which controls out-of-state ozone emissions by reducing the release of nitrogen oxides, an ozone precursor, from coal-fired power plants and some industrial sources.
Ground-level ozone, the primary component of smog, can cause serious breathing problems. It also contributes to the excess nitrogen that fuels the growth of agal blooms that suffocate aquatic life.
The bill would also repeal the wetlands protection rule the administration is currently revising to reflect the recent Supreme Court decision. Wetlands play a vital role in Bay restoration by filtering water pollution and providing habitat for Bay species.
Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) Federal Director Keisha Sedlacek made the following statement about the bill:
“While CBF appreciates that the Chesapeake Bay Program and Chesapeake WILD grants were spared the budget ax, we are deeply disturbed by this bill’s draconian cuts to the EPA and Interior Department overall budgets next year. Protecting investments in these valuable programs is a hollow victory when the House Appropriations Committee would gut the budgets of the leading agencies responsible for protecting human health and the environment.
“We also strongly oppose the committee’s attempt to upend rules to control interstate ozone pollution that increases nitrogen pollution in the Bay and its tributaries and protect wetlands that play an important role in protecting water quality.
“CBF urges Senate appropriators to continue prioritizing Bay restoration by providing the necessary funds and rejecting policy riders that would hinder regulatory work to provide clean air, water, and a safe environment to those in the watershed.”
On Thursday, July 20, Gov. Moore renewed his commitment to Bay restoration and announced new strategies to move efforts forward. Citing recent research by leading Bay scientists the Governor pledged to follow the science and fully engage all of state government in restoration efforts. The Governor pledged that Maryland would be the first state in the region to wholeheartedly adopt the report’s recommendations and said that Maryland’s efforts would be driven by science and data.
In addition, today the Governor signed two Executive Orders. The first establishes the Governor’s Council on the Chesapeake and Coastal Bays Watershed. The second establishes an Oyster Shell and Substrate Task Force. A healthy oyster population is critical to the health of the Chesapeake Bay and oyster shells for use to create oyster reefs are in short supply.
Following the announcements, Chesapeake Bay Foundation Maryland Executive Director Allison Colden said:
“Leading Bay scientists recently released a report that identifies what has worked, what hasn’t, and suggested improvements that will accelerate efforts to achieve healthy rivers, streams, and the Chesapeake Bay. We commend the Governor for his leadership in beginning to align state policies with these scientific recommendations. Targeting the state’s efforts to areas where they will be most effective, both in reducing pollution and improving habitat for living resources, is an essential first step.
“We look forward to working with Governor Moore and Maryland’s state agencies to accelerate progress to achieve clean water for Maryland communities and future generations.”
In support of the Oyster Shell and Substrate Task Force, Ms. Colden added:
“Increasing the oyster population is critical to ensuring a healthy Bay. Oysters help improve water quality and create a rich habitat for more than 300 species of fish, crabs and other organisms.
“Maryland’s oyster restoration efforts, aquaculture industry, and public fishery would all benefit from expanding oyster reefs in the Bay, but oyster shells are in short supply. This task force will provide guidance on how best to support oyster reef expansion and utilize this limited resource. We look forward to serving on the task force in support of this critical effort.”
Osprey nests in Virginia’s lower Chesapeake Bay are failing at the highest rate ever recorded, according to data released this month by the College of William & Mary’s Center for Conservation Biology. Out of 167 nests monitored, only 17 produced young osprey, well below levels needed to sustain the osprey population. Researchers linked the nest failure to locally low numbers of menhaden, a highly nutritious forage fish that is the target of a large industrial fishery in the lower Bay by Omega Protein.
“Within Mobjack Bay young osprey are starving in nests because the decades long overharvest of menhaden has caused local depletion,” states Dr. Bryan Watts, Director of the College of William & Mary’s Center for Conservation Biology. Watts adds, “although osprey do feed on other fish species within the lower Chesapeake Bay none of these species offer comparable nutrient content.”
Chesapeake Bay Foundation Senior Regional Ecosystem Scientist Chris Moore issued the following statement.
“The osprey reproduction issues in the lower Chesapeake Bay are alarming. Menhaden are a key food for not only osprey, but many other iconic species, from striped bass to humpback whales.
“For decades we’ve been concerned about Omega Protein’s industrial harvest of menhaden in the Bay, and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation has long fought to ensure enough menhaden are left in the water for a healthy ecosystem.
“Given the latest data on osprey reproduction from William & Mary, it is more important than ever to quantify localized depletion of menhaden in the Chesapeake. Without this information, species like osprey will continue to bear the weight of Omega’s fishing activities while the company continues to profit. We urge Omega Protein to cooperate with state scientists to address this critical issue.”
Urges the Commonwealth to pay its fair share
The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) on Thursday filed an amicus brief asking the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to reverse a Commonwealth Court decision that the Borough of West Chester’s stormwater fee is a tax as applied to West Chester University of Pennsylvania property within the borough. If the Commonwealth Court decision would stand, the state Education Department would be exempt from paying the assessment.
This decision would also open the door to allow all Commonwealth properties, not just in the Borough of West Chester, to be exempt from any stormwater utility fees, in contradiction to current case law. These unpaid fees would then eventually fall on private citizen ratepayers.
The brief states that “the State’s properties discharge large quantities of polluted stormwater, not just in West Chester Borough. The Commonwealth’s opposition to paying any stormwater utility fees while simultaneously administering a stormwater compliance system admonishing the public to pay its fair share is an unjust double standard.”
In 2013, then Governor Corbett signed into law changes to the state Municipal Authorities Act which allowed certain local governments to form stormwater authorities. These entities can collect fees from residents for the management, maintenance, and improvement of stormwater infrastructure.
There are thousands of authorities across the United States. In Pennsylvania there are currently about 65 local governments that have formed an authority. Many of these local governments include areas with state-owned land.
As stormwater passes over impervious surfaces it often picks up oil, grease, dirt, and nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus). According to Penn State Extension, uncontrolled stormwater flows cause increased flooding, pollutant loading, erosion, and property damage. Sediment —gravel and soil particles that have been eroded from the land, frequently by stormwater—is Pennsylvania’s largest surface water pollutant by volume.
According to a 2022 statewide scientific assessment of the health of Pennsylvania’s streams, urban runoff pollutes over 3,500 miles of streams statewide and sends over 15.6 million pounds of nitrogen pollution to the Chesapeake Bay a year.
The impact of outdated, undersized, and dilapidated stormwater infrastructure goes beyond stream pollution. It can worsen flooding in roads and basements, sweep away property, and even endanger public safety. That damage will only increase as precipitation continues to intensify.
Last year, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave Pennsylvania’s stormwater infrastructure a “D” overall, suggesting significant deterioration. The report finds that $6.7 billion in investments over the next three to five years is needed to keep existing infrastructure from risking failure.
By raising funds to repair and upgrade stormwater infrastructure, authorities help local communities protect the health, welfare, and quality of life of the residents in their communities. By exempting state-owned land from paying their fair-share, stormwater discharges from these areas contribute to the problem, but not the solution.
After the amicus brief was filed with the state Supreme Court, CBF Pennsylvania Staff Attorney Trisha Salvia issued this statement.
“Public and private landowners, including businesses, churches, and the federal government, are paying to support stormwater improvements in their local communities, as a result of federal and state mandates.
“The Commonwealth should start doing its part by paying its fair share of stormwater costs for state-owned properties.
“In Harrisburg, the Commonwealth owns acres of impervious land that discharges stormwater directly into the Susquehanna River, either directly or indirectly through the city’s stormwater system.
“Capital Region Water informed a Senate committee last January that the Commonwealth has not paid what it owes, $387,000 annually since October 2020. The Hampden Sewer Authority in Cumberland County testified it is owed more than $1.2 million since October 2015.”
