Chesapeake Bay health worsened in 2018 for the first time in a decade, report says
Source: The Virginia Pilot
For the first time in a decade, the overall health of the Chesapeake Bay declined, dropping from a C- to a D+ in an annual State of the Bay report issued Monday.
Culprits in the decline include increased runoff from rainstorms in 2018 that were rendered more intense by a changing climate and continued failure in some jurisdictions to curb nutrient and sediment loads.
This is especially true in Pennsylvania, which consistently fails to meet most of its bay cleanup commitments, and where the chronically polluted Susquehanna River delivers half the bay’s freshwater.
“Simply put, the bay suffered a massive assault in 2018,” Will Baker, president of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, told reporters. “The bay’s sustained improvement was reversed in 2018, exposing just how fragile the recovery is.” Adding to the assault, Baker said, are plans by the Trump administration to roll back clean water and clean air regulations that will directly impact the watershed.
Read more: https://pilotonline.com/news/local/environment/article_c1fdba20-12b8-11e9-b950-f30fffc3248a.html
We've devoted billions and decades of work to bring back the Chesapeake Bay. Economic impacts to the regions is trillions of dollars.
The Bay is just about as critical to the planet as the Rainforest. It's disgusting to see this destruction of one of Americas most critical natural resources.
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