Pete Horsley
Frederick County Master Gardener
(3/1) Formed over 10,000 years ago by melting glaciers that overflowed the Susquehanna River valley, the Chesapeake Bay is a timeless treasure of the Mid-Atlantic. The second largest fresh-water estuary on the planet, it covers more than 4,480 square miles and has a shoreline of more than 11,000 miles. Beyond the spectacular scenery of flora and fauna, the vital history of the bay and the surrounding watershed shows what a tremendous economic impact the bay has had on our state.
The health of the bay has deteriorated during the past century, largely due to agricultural runoff, untreated or inadequately treated sewage, overuse of lawn chemicals, increased housing and paved areas, and industrial development. Last May, the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science ranked the bay’s overall health a C-, or 44 percent, its lowest score since 2011.
Following are some specific areas of concern, according to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.
Agricultural impacts - Agricultural use throughout the watershed contributes nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment to the waterways that feed the bay. Best management practices, including stream buffers, stream fencing, nutrient management plans, cover crops, rotational grazing, and continuous no-till, are among the most cost-effective ways of protecting and improving the bay. In March 2020, the Maryland General Assembly passed legislation (co-sponsored by Senator Ron Young, D-Frederick, and Delegate Dana Stein, D-Baltimore County) to help farmers with these practices; however, continuing federal and state government investments are needed to aid farmers in these vital efforts.
Air pollution - According to CBF, the primary polluters in the Chesapeake Bay watershed are people—about 18 million of them, growing by 150,000 per year. Much pollution comes from vehicle emissions, as well as from nitrogen, phosphorus, and mercury (the latter contaminates fish in the bay) from coal-fired power plant smokestacks, even from states west of the Mid-Atlantic and as far north as Canada.
Chemical contamination - Toxic chemicals enter the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers and streams via wastewater, agriculture, stormwater, and air pollution. PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) and PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) are also key contaminants. Notably, much of this type of pollution comes from the coal-fired power plant emissions mentioned previously, as well as from stormwater and industrial facilities. For example, a study at Sparrows Point showed that wastes from the steel plant there included benzene, chromium, lead, naphthalene, and zinc (cbf.org).
Habitat degradation - Excess pollution in the bay reduces essential oxygen levels and impacts underwater grasses so vital to blue crabs and other key bay denizens. CBF notes that the Chesapeake Bay is home to almost 350 species of finfish and over 170 species of shellfish. Dead zones, areas with minimal to zero oxygen, literally suffocate fish, crabs, oysters, and other aquatic life. The zones are caused by excessive nitrogen and phosphorous pollution from agricultural runoff, and nutrients from fertilizers, septic systems, and other pollutants in urban/suburban runoff. Fortunately, according to CBF, Maryland is on track to meet its nutrient reduction targets by 2025, due in part to investments to upgrade sewage treatment plants, which have exceeded goals.
Forest losses - In a recent 25-year period, over 700,000 acres of forest in the bay watershed were lost to development. The dual effect of this was loss of effective filtering habitat and greatly increased sediment into the bay. On the positive side, CBF says that trees and shrubs planted along streams reduce up to 65 percent of the nitrogen; 45 percent of the phosphorus; and 60 percent of the sediment that would otherwise enter adjacent streams. Tree buffers also shade and cool streams and stabilize stream banks to reduce erosion.
These are just a few of the issues involved in making the Chesapeake Bay healthy. In a subsequent article, we will describe other impacts on the health of the Chesapeake and how you can help save the Chesapeake through best practices applied to your own house and property. As well, you can become Bay-Wise certified through the UMD Master Gardeners program that accredits individual properties for efforts to save the Chesapeake Bay from further deterioration www.extension.umd.edu/frederick-county/home-gardening/bay-wise
For more information concerning Bay-Wise certification and other gardening issues, visit the following web sites:
- Chesapeake Bay Foundation: www.cbf.org
- Bay-Wise certification: https://extension.umd.edu/frederick-county/home-gardening/bay-wise
- Chesapeake Bay watershed map: www.cbf.org/how-we-save-the-bay/chesapeake-clean-water-blueprint/pollution-limits/pollution-limits-by-state.html
- Legislation on conservation practices (see pollution reductions): www.cbf.org/news-media/newsroom/2020/maryland/legislation-aimed-at-increasing-long-term-conservation-practices-on-maryland-farms-becomes-law.html
- Frederick County Master Gardeners: www.extension.umd.edu/frederick-county/home-gardening
How can you protect this regional, national and world treasure? Through your own adoption of best practices in your landscape and gardens, such as controlling the stormwater runoff from your own property. In the process, you can become Bay-Wise certified. If everyone does his or her part, the bay will recover and these dead zones will decrease or even disappear.
How can you become Bay-Wise certified? Certifications are done April through October, and currently are all virtual. Check your practices against the Master Gardener guidelines for Bay-Wise property certification, the "Bay-Wise Maryland Yardstick." If you compile at least 36 inches (i.e., points) on the Yardstick list, e-mail the Yardstick and four to six high-definition photos of your yard/garden to https://extension.umd.edu/frederick-county/home-gardening/bay-wise.
Master gardeners will review your Yardstick list and pictures. If your yard/garden is certified, you will receive a certificate and a metal sign and post to show you are Baywise-certified, signifying to your neighbors your commitment to the health of the Bay. See more details at Bay-Wise MD Landscape Certification - YouTube.
There are a number of property-specific factors to consider in doing your part to help save the bay. Not all factors will apply to all properties.
Control stormwater runoff
- Direct water from gutters/downspouts to garden beds to prevent runoff.
- Plant groundcovers in thinly vegetated areas.
- Use porous approaches to walkways/driveways to absorb runoff.
- Install mulched beds on the lower edges of your property.
- Install a rain garden or rain barrels to capture rainwater runoff.
Protect the waterfront
- Establish a low-maintenance border near all ponds, streams, etc., to slow runoff.
- Use native grasses with deep root systems.
Mow properly/water efficiently
- Use an electric mower to reduce air pollution.
- Water at the base, not on the leaves, of landscape plants.
- Design your landscape with plants that survive on natural rainfall.
- Use drip or micro-irrigation in flower beds to reduce runoff.
Manage yard pests with Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
- Avoid the routine use of pesticides.
- Hand-pick pests or use non-pesticide tools such as attractant traps and floating row covers.
Fertilize wisely
- Test your soil every three–five years.
- Use compost, slow release, or natural organic fertilizers.
- In autumn, mow lawns lightly covered with fallen leaves, rather than raking and disposing of leaves separately.
Plant wisely
- Replace problem plants with non-invasive native plants.
- Incorporate a variety of native plants.
- If a lawn is necessary, plant drought-tolerant turfgrass species.
- Replace unneeded lawn areas with ground covers.
To have your property evaluated for Bay-Wise adaptation and/or certification, review certification requirements at the YouTube video mentioned above or at <University of MD Extension Site to Bay-Wise Program Certification>.
Why help clean up the Bay through "backyard" participation? By following the Yardstick practices listed above, we help to protect the health of fish, crabs, oysters, and other aquatic life in the Bay. For example, curtailing nitrogen and phosphorous pollution from human activities, particularly including sewage and septic systems; agricultural, urban and suburban runoff; and stormwater runoff—all help control or shrink the dead zones from pollutants that flow from our yards to the Chesapeake Bay.
In addition, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation reports that mercury in fish tissue can be more than a million times higher than in surrounding water. Air pollution, primarily from power plants, is the main source of the mercury contamination of fish in the Bay watershed, and, in turn, in those humans who eat the fish. At greatest risk are fetuses, infants, children, and women of childbearing age.
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