If you recall, in 2010 the EPA set a limit for release of nutrients and sediment into the Chesapeake Bay watershed that was then partitioned to the six states (and Washington DC) watershed based on the Chesapeake Bay computer model and monitoring data. Likeall government programs it will never die, but continually evolve and grow.
All six Bay watershed states and the District of Columbia were
required to submit plans spelling out the measures each would take by 2025 to
achieve the needed pollution reductions. Then each year, EPA would evaluate the
progress in implementing mitigation measures or practices. The model then would
be used to estimate the amount of nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment that would
make it to the Bay under average conditions.
Only the District of Columbia and West Virginia have so far
met their 2025 goals. The rest of us continue to struggle to implement all the
measures outlined in our plans. The goal was to have all the practices in place
by 2025 to meet the Chesapeake Bay Clean Water Blueprint restoration goals as
predicted by the computer model forecasts.
Virginia continues to lag behind its goals. Virginia
achieved its 2023 nitrogen targets for the James basin but did not achieve its
2023 targets for nitrogen in the other major basins (Potomac, Rappahannock,
York, and Eastern Shore). Virginia did not achieve its 2023 phosphorus targets
for any major basin. In their “suggestions for improvement” EPA
recommended that Virginia target implementation of nonpoint sources of
pollution in the urban/suburban stormwater sector and the agricultural sector
using the cost share BMP implementation programs.
As Virginia struggles to meet our 2025 Chesapeake Bay clean
up goals, DEQ has announced a new $20 million Pay-For-Outcomes Nonpoint
Source Pollution Reduction grant program. This is similar to a program that Maryland
adopted last year. This one-year pilot program will provide payments based on
the number of pounds of pollution actually removed or prevented.
DEQ intends that the Pay-For-Outcomes program will reverse
the script and identify the most cost-effective means of reducing nonpoint
source pollution and encourage innovation. All this is intended to move us
forward in the Chesapeake Bay cleanup. The truth is, thought the Ag BMP
modeling is backed by scientific calculations, there isn’t a full verification
to guarantee water quality is improving after a practice is installed. The
cleanup is further challenged by all the land use changes as the region
continues to develop urban and industrial sprawl of higher density housing and
data centers.
Under the DEQ Pay-For Outcomes program, any business,
nonprofit, government entity, or individual may apply for grants ranging from
$100,000 to $7.5 million to reduce the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus
pollution entering Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay watershed. The proposals may rely
on Best Management Practices already commonly used in Virginia or may offer
novel technologies based on sound science.
The applicants will need to identify the price per pound of
pollution that will reduced, and payments will be based on the actual
reductions. A panel of professors chosen as scientific experts will review the
proposals and rank each primarily on cost per pound of pollution reduction but
with consideration to habitat and resilience benefits, readiness to proceed,
and other factors.
Applications are due Feb. 3, 2025. A mandatorypre-application webinar will be held on January 6, 2025. Stay tuned for furtherinformation.