New day for the bay?

The tide is starting to turn for efforts to stop the flow of pollution into the Chesapeake

For years, there has been scientific consensus that the greatest pollution reduction to the Chesapeake Bay will be achieved through widespread implementation of proven agricultural conservation practices. These practices address the greatest source of pollution to the bay, are the most cost-efficient, and will yield the greatest return on investment.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation has worked with a diverse group of partners - including homebuilders groups, municipal waste associations, local river groups and agricultural organizations - to fund and implement the states' bay and river restoration plans. Those plans, the scientifically designed road map for restoration, have languished without sufficient funding for much of this decade.

But the tide is beginning to turn. CBF and its partners have successfully championed new investments in farm conservation practices. At the federal level, an unprecedented $440 million has recently been approved for agricultural conservation practices to reduce pollution in the Chesapeake Bay region over the next five years. When matched with state and farmer dollars, and with other programs and funding in place, this could achieve almost two-thirds of the region's nitrogen pollution reduction goal.

In Maryland, money generated by the "flush tax" has not only funded sewage treatment improvements but also dramatically expanded funding for cover crops, widely recognized as one of the most cost-effective and environmentally promising ways to reduce agricultural runoff. Farmers have signed up in record numbers. In addition, the Chesapeake Bay Trust Fund, funded with $25 million this year and $50 million in following years, will provide additional opportunities for farmers to invest in conservation practices.

In Pennsylvania, more than 60 agricultural and environmental organizations partnered with CBF to win passage of $10 million in tax credits for agricultural conservation practices. The demand for those tax credits was so strong that it took only 10 days for the applications to exceed the funding. CBF has challenged the administration of Gov. Edward G. Rendell to honor its commitment to increase state funding now that the federal government stepped up to the plate.

In Virginia, despite a budget deficit of millions of dollars, CBF and its partners won $20 million for agricultural conservation practices during this year's legislative session.