Data from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Old Dominion University found that the dead zone in the Chesapeake Bay was smaller than average in June. This is in line with a forecast from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay Program, U.S. Geological Survey, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, and University of Michigan, which was released in June, predicting a smaller than average dead zone this summer.
After reviewing the findings, Beth McGee, Chesapeake Bay Foundation Director of Science and Agricultural Policy, issued this statement.
“The smaller than average dead zone is an indication that efforts to reduce pollution are succeeding. However, that there is a dead zone at all underscores the need to accelerate efforts to reduce pollution across the region, and most importantly in Pennsylvania. The Commonwealth is far off-track for meeting its 2025 commitment.
“The states have determined that more than 80 percent of that pollution reduction necessary to meet the 2025 deadline needs to come from agriculture. It is essential that the states and federal government increase investments in agricultural conservation practices that will not only reduce pollution, but help the region respond to climate change.”
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