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Evaluation of Proposed Spray Irrigation (Trappe East WWTF)

October 11, 2021

This report was written by the engineering and environmental consulting firm Antea Group. It was commissioned by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) and ShoreRivers to review MDE's preliminary approval of a wastewater permit for the development, which would add about 2,500 houses and apartments as well as a shopping center to the small Eastern Shore town of Trappe. The spray irrigation plan would allow the developer to spray an average of about 540,000 gallons per day of treated wastewater onto nearly 90 acres of fields near the project.Antea determined that disposing of the new development's treated wastewater by spraying it onto fields could create flooding and pollution problems that MDE overlooked by using outdated formulas and faulty assumptions. The firm's experts did not agree with MDE's finding that no pollution would leave the spray field.

The Economic Benefits of Cleaning Up the Chesapeake

October 6, 2014

Information on the economic benefits of environmental improvement is an important consideration for anyone (firms, organizations, government agencies, and individuals) concerned about the cost-effectiveness of changes in management designed to achieve that improvement. In the case of the Chesapeake Bay TMDL (Total Maximum Daily Load of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment), these benefits would accrue due to improvements in the health, and therefore productivity, of land and water in the watershed. These productivity changes occur both due to the outcomes of the TMDL and state implementation plans, also known as a "Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint" itself (i.e., cleaner water in the Bay) as well as a result of the measures taken to achieve those outcomes that have their own beneficial side effects. All such changes are then translated into dollar values for various ecosystem services, including water supply, food production, recreation, aesthetics, and others. By these measures, the total economic benefit of the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint is estimated at $22.5 billion per year (in 2013 dollars), as measured as the improvement over current conditions, or at $28.2 billion per year (in 2013 dollars), as measured as the difference between the Clean Water Blueprint and a business-as-usual scenario. (Due to lag times—it takes some time for changes in land management to result in improvements in water quality, the full measure of these benefits would begin to accrue sometime after full implementation of the Blueprint.) These considerable benefits should be considered alongside the costs and other economic aspects of implementing the Chesapeake Clean Water Blueprint.

2012 State of the Bay Report

January 9, 2013

In the 2012 State of the Bay report, five of 13 indicators improved, seven stayed the same, and only one declined. Overall, the score advanced one point since it was last issued in 2010, when it jumped three points. That is an improvement of over 10 percent in less than five years.

The Economic Argument for Cleaning Up the Chesapeake Bay and its Rivers

May 1, 2012

Failure to "Save the Bay" threatens the Bay's value as an economic driver. Conversely, investing in clean-water technology creates jobs, generates economic activity, and saves money in the long run. Hence, the protection and restoration of the Chesapeake is essential for a healthy and vibrant regional economy. This CBF report takes a close look at the relationship between clean water and the Bay region's local economies.

2014 State of the Bay Report

December 23, 2010

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation's 2014 State of the Bay report presents a mix of good and bad news. The great news: Water quality indicator scores have improved significantly over the 2010 and 2008 scores. The worrisome news: Blue crabs and striped bass are not doing well. The declines in these metrics and in the phosphorus indicator offset the improvements in water quality. Overall, the 2014 score is unchanged from 2012.

2010 State of the Bay Report

December 23, 2010

A Bay Health Index of only 31 versus a score of 100 when Colonial settlers arrived is a sad testament to how we have treated a National Treasure. The index has increased three points since it was last issued for 2008. Eight of CBF's 13 State of the Bay indicators have improved this year. In 2008, Maryland and Virginia set science-based regulations to curtail female crab catch, and this year's crab score leapt by 15 points. Underwater grasses, once devastated by pollution, are doing much better. That indicator score advanced by two. The dissolved oxygen, buffers, water clarity, and toxics scores showed measurable progress as well.

On the Brink: Chesapeake's Native Oysters

July 1, 2010

This CBF report finds that Chesapeake Bay oysters are developing natural resistance to the diseases that have so devastated the Bay's oyster population in recent decades and calls for additional sanctuaries to repopulate the species.

Bad Water 2009: The Impact on Human Health in the Chesapeake Bay Region

July 7, 2009

The report links pollution to human health risks and calls on the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to act now to reduce that pollution and the potential threats to human health.