Breathing Life Into the Bay

Did you know that cleaning up the air we breathe also cleans up the Chesapeake Bay? Well, let me walk you through how I led an effort to intertwine two key state initiatives, the Chesapeake Bay Health Agreements and the Maryland Climate Pollution Reduction Plan, to estimate how reducing climate pollution emissions translates to reduced nutrients in the Bay.

For my state science policy fellowship, I was matched with the Maryland Department of the Environment to shepherd the Ecological Restoration Permitting Study Report through its final stages. I was also encouraged to pursue independent research projects, bring a fresh perspective to the department, and make unique connections between programs. 

I worked on projects spanning scientific disciplines, from ecological restoration to climate change mitigation and adaptation. While attending workshops for the Maryland Commission on Climate Change and the Ecological Restoration Permitting Study Report, I started to see the clear connection between climate change initiatives and water quality across the state.

Maryland is a national leader on reducing climate pollution, with a plan to reach net-zero emissions by 2045. As the state implements climate-friendly policies, such as promoting electric vehicles and expanding green energy, the benefits extend beyond reducing carbon emissions. These initiatives also help reduce nitrogen pollution, a key factor in the Bay's water quality.

Burning fossil fuels in vehicles and power plants forms nitrogen oxides, which contribute significantly to air pollution. When these pollutants are emitted into the atmosphere, they don’t just stay in the air; they travel and eventually fall back to the earth in a process known as atmospheric deposition. In Maryland, atmospheric deposition is a major source of nitrogen pollution, accounting for up to a quarter of the total nitrogen that ends up in the Chesapeake Bay. This nitrogen gets deposited onto the land and water, entering the watershed and, ultimately, the Bay.

So, why is this a problem for the Chesapeake Bay? Nitrogen is a nutrient that can promote plant growth, but too much of it leads to a process called eutrophication. When excess nitrogen enters the water, it fuels the overgrowth of algae, creating large blooms that block sunlight from reaching the underwater grasses vital to the Bay's ecosystem. When these algae die, they decompose, consuming oxygen in the process. This leads to "dead zones," or areas of the Bay with depleted oxygen levels where fish, crabs, and other marine life struggle to survive.

The link between air and water quality becomes clear: climate initiatives that reduce nitrogen oxide emissions directly impact nitrogen levels in the Chesapeake Bay. But by how much?

As a fellow, I have been working to bring together researchers from the Maryland Department of the Environment, the University of Maryland, the US Environmental Protection Agency, and the Chesapeake Bay Program to develop a way to model the co-benefits of climate mitigation decisions on nitrogen loads in the Chesapeake Bay.

This effort will allow Maryland to evaluate how climate policy decisions impact water quality and integrate these findings into their Watershed Implementation Plan. It will also set a precedent for other Chesapeake Bay states to follow in the future. By quantifying the link between climate mitigation efforts and Bay health, we can provide a strong foundation for future discussions and inspire informed conversations ahead of the renegotiation of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement in 2025.