EPA: Maryland on track to meet 2017 Bay pollution goals

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently released its evaluations of Chesapeake Bay jurisdictions’ restoration efforts, and Maryland is on track to meet all its 2017 target goals. The EPA evaluated restoration efforts of the six Bay states — Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia — and the District of Columbia from 2014 to 2015 to determine whether the jurisdictions will meet their midpoint 2017 goals. The Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load goals aim to reduce pollution to the Bay, with a deadline to implement what was deemed necessary to restore the Bay by 2025. Sixty percent of the pollution reduction measures need to be in place by 2017. The TMDL aims to reduce phosphorus, nitrogen and sediment pollution across different sectors, including agriculture, wastewater, urban runoff, septic and forrest coverage. EPA’s evaluation indicates it is unlikely jurisdictions, collectively, will meet the 60 percent threshold for reducing nitrogen by 2017, but they are collectively on track to meet local reductions for phosphorus and sediment.