Excerpt
NO natural resource issue currently dominates the news in Maryland and surrounding states as much as the declining health of the Chesapeake Bay. A multimillion dollar study completed in 1983 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) identified the major sources of pollution to the bay, among them agriculture.
While many industries reacted defensively to the report, agriculture took the offensive by launching a public information campaign, “Maryland Farmers:Partners with the Bay.” This campaign has proved successful in securing farmers' cooperation with the bay cleanup and in creating a positive public image of agriculture's commitment to natural resource protection.
A bay in decline
The Chesapeake Bay is the nation's largest estuary. Its 64,000-square-mile drainage basin occupies portions of six states and the District of Columbia. Though much of the drainage basin is rural, large population centers surround the bay. These include Baltimore, Maryland; Washington, D.C.; and Richmond and Hampton-Norfolk-Newport News, Virginia. People place many demands on the bay, uses ranging from recreational activities to commercial fishing and shipping. Since the 1950s, the bay's ability to support some of these activities, especially the seafood …
Footnotes
W. L. Magette is an assistant professor in the Agricultural Engineering Department and R. A. Weismiller is an associate professor in the Agronomy Department, University of Maryland, College Park, 20742. K. C. Gugulis is a public affairs specialist with the Soil Conservation Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, College Park, Maryland 20740.
- Copyright 1985 by the Soil and Water Conservation Society
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