A new poll conducted by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) reveals more than half (52%) the region’s residents believe the challenges facing the Chesapeake Bay are becoming more serious and will continue to do so over the next five years. Only 12% expect the Bay’s challenges to become less serious.
Most poll respondents (55%) do think restoring the Chesapeake Bay has become more of a priority over the last 10 years. When asked what actions they felt would best address the challenges facing the Bay, the respondents offered a range:
- Ensuring the Bay is free of toxic contaminants (86%);
- Protecting and enhancing living resources such as fish and oysters (84%);
- Restoring, protecting, and enhancing vital habitats (84%);
- Reducing pollutants and improving water quality (84%);
- Increasing environmental literacy (79%); and,
- Increasing climate resiliency (76%)
Polling results suggest the top three indicators of successful restoration of the Bay include pollution reductions (82%), water quality and clarity (77%), and habitat improvements (59%). The poll surveyed 2000 adults aged 18-99 within watershed counties in Maryland, Pennsylvania (plus Philadelphia), and Virginia. Surveys were also collected in Washington D.C.
The decades-long Bay restoration effort is threatened by the Trump administration’s planned budget cuts, including at least a 65% cut proposed for the Environmental Protection Agency, mass layoffs at government agencies supporting Chesapeake Bay restoration, and suspended grant programs. This all comes as the federal-state Bay restoration partnership is set to update the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement, and the Bay’s future seems even more uncertain.
“Nearly 19 million people in our region rely on the Chesapeake Bay for their wellbeing, livelihoods, and quality of life,” said Hilary Harp Falk, president and CEO of CBF. “Federal rollbacks risk upending decades of progress toward a healthy Bay. States in this region must step up and do more, not less, in the face of setbacks.”
“The Chesapeake Bay Agreement has guided restoration work for decades, remaining a constant through changes in federal and state administrations,” Falk said. “We need a comprehensive Chesapeake Bay Agreement where success is focused not only on reducing pollution, but also ensures thriving people, plants, and animals.”
The Bay restoration effort is built on a partnership between the federal government, the six states in the Bay watershed, Washington, D.C., and the Chesapeake Bay Commission. The Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement was signed in 2014, with a stated vision of “an environmentally and economically sustainable Chesapeake Bay watershed with clean water, abundant life, conserved lands and access to the water, a vibrant cultural heritage, and a diversity of engaged stakeholders.”
State and federal leaders had pledged to update the agreement in 2025, and a meeting is planned for March 28 where they will take the first steps towards making their recommendations. A revised Agreement is expected to be finalized by the leaders in December at a Chesapeake Executive Council Meeting.
“Strong federal support, combined with leadership from the states, has been key to every Bay restoration success so far—from bringing back oyster reefs to reducing pollution from sewage treatment plants,” Falk said. “The Chesapeake Bay Agreement brings everyone together and provides accountability to the federal-state partnership.”
CBF emphasizes that focusing solely on reducing pollution is not the way to Bay restoration.
“The cleanest water in the world means little if we don’t have the Bay’s beautiful marshes, clean streams, sustainable fisheries, and flourishing communities,” Falk said.
This means a holistic approach to improving the Bay watershed, not slashing the work already in progress and showing results. Education, hands-on learning, engaging communities in their natural surroundings all play a role.
The 2014 Bay Agreement has an overarching goal to ensure students around the watershed know how to protect and restore their local waters.
“Our children are inheriting a world where environmental challenges are becoming increasingly urgent,” said Tonya Humphrey, a teacher with Prince George County Public Schools in Virginia who has led students on environmental education experiences for 20 years.
“Through environmental education, we empower our students to become problem solvers, advocates, and stewards of our natural world,” Humphrey said. “They will carry these lessons forward in their careers and communities. This kind of learning is only possible through strong partnerships between schools, local and state governments, and environmental organizations.”
Additional polling results include:
- 72% of survey respondents living in or near the watershed agree that efforts to Save the Bay also address climate change.
- Respondents identified their top five issues negatively affecting the Chesapeake Bay watershed: plastic waste (51%), toxic pollution (47%), stormwater runoff (36%), climate change (35%), residential and commercial development (34%)
- 50% of these watershed residents spend at least a few days per year at or on the Chesapeake Bay
- What is the best crab seasoning? Old Bay (79%), J.O. (5%)
- What is the Bay animal most in need of protection? Blue crab (70%), bald eagle (68%), oyster (49%), striped bass (36%)
