Four of the six states in the Chesapeake Bay region, plus the District of Columbia, met the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) deadline to submit plans on reducing pollution in the Bay, according to a report by the Washington Post. The EPA required the states to submit Watershed Implementation Plans, detailing how they would reduce nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment pollution brought into the Bay via storm runoff over the next 15 years.
The plans go towards the EPA’s “pollution diet” for the Bay, an effort to improve water quality and animal habitats, which could also save seafood- and recreation-related jobs in the area. Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia and the District submitted their plans on Monday. Officials from Maryland and New York said that they were still completing their plans. Although many city and state governments complained that the plans would be extremely expensive, many states said they would dedicate funds to water quality improvement.
The EPA must now evaluate the plans to determine whether they are adequate. According to the report, the EPA would not yet comment on the submitted plans.
Source: The Washington Post
