W2 PM Chesapeake Bay Restoration (Part 2)
Wednesday, 16 November 2005: 1:50 PM - 5:30 PM in Ballroom 2

(BOE-1122-324287) Chesapeake Bay - People, Policies, Pollutants, and Perseverance: A Vision for the Future.

Boesch, D¹, ¹ University of Maryland Center of Environmental Sciences

ABSTRACT- For decades, scientists, environmental managers, politicians, and the Chesapeake Bay communities have worked toward addressing the physical, chemical, and biological pressures influencing conditions with the Chesapeake Bay. With great effort, accords have been reached about how to approach the most pressing problems. The SETAC symposium on the Bay has identified trends in resources as well as identified some of the major pressures. The Bay is inextricably linked not only to things that occur within the Bay but also to an expansive watershed that includes a number of states. Charting a path toward approiate management for the Bay has not only been a technical challenge but also an economic and political one. Perhaps as much as any place in the United States, addressing these challenges has required arriving at a shared understanding among a diverse assemblage of stakeholders that don't always share the same view and who differ in the degree to which they impact the Bay, participate in the benefits of improved water quality conditions, or are otherwise impacted by decisions. With this diverse fabric of people, policies, and pollutants, the path forward often seems as turbid as some of the Bays tributaries. This paper, provides an overview of where we currently stand as we make efforts to move forward. It identifies some of the challenges and constraints and highlights the opportunities to make progress.

Key words: Chesapeake Bay