Connecting Communities Through Water In 2023, a Polynesian voyaging canoe called Hōkūleʻa set out to circumnavigate the Pacific Ocean and uncover, recover, and reclaim culture, traditions, and a deeper relationship with Earth. The purpose of the voyage was to develop young leaders and connect communities with our oceans, science, and indigenous wisdom. As our [...]
Eat Your Invasives: The Bay’s Battle with Blue Catfish Blue catfish have been terrorizing Chesapeake Bay’s native fish for decades; they consume smaller fish and invertebrates in huge quantities and compete with larger fish. Some of their prey species are economically important, like blue crabs and menhaden, while others are already the focus of [...]
The Burden of Data Centers on Our Communities Data has become essential to modern life. Demand for data centers has increased in step with remote work, content streamed to smartphones, AI-assisted internet searches, and more. While necessary for many purposes, the burden of data centers on our communities are numerous, including using land, water, [...]
Flotsam and Jetsam: Fighting Debris in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed The Chesapeake Bay watershed encompasses 64,000 mi2 of land and the homes of over 18 million people; the unfortunate truth is that this population is the cause of a lot of trash in local waters and the Bay. Whether we’re talking about plastic straws, [...]
UninHABitable: Harmful Algal Blooms Across the Watershed Harmful algal blooms (HABs) threaten waters from the upper reaches of our rivers to the estuaries of the Chesapeake Bay. HAB species can release toxins, reduce dissolved oxygen, form extensive bottom mats, and cloud the water - all with impacts on aquatic animal species, recreation, and even [...]
CRC Member Take-Over Series: Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) It’s All About Carbon: Coastal Cycling and Forest Function Carbon is both the cause and the source of potential mitigation of our changing climate. Research on carbon cycling has implications for policy and the resilience of our communities. Blue carbon ecosystems—tidal marshes, mangroves, and seagrasses—and [...]
The Solar Situation: The state of the science and the industry Solar energy is becoming less expensive and more efficient. However, the utility-scale solar panel installations being proposed and installed around the Mid-Atlantic region will transform land characteristics. Currently, guidance and understanding of best practices relating to the land development and management of solar [...]
How to Protect Local Waterways In 2019, the Local Government Advisory Committee and Local Leadership Workgroup began work on a suite of learning materials that frame the Chesapeake Bay Program’s goals through the lens of a very important audience: local government officials. Elected officials make decisions for their communities that impact restoration progress. This [...]
Stream Restoration: Are current practices giving us what we want? In March 2023, the Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee brought together scientific and management experts to assess stream restoration practices. Over the course of three days, the group explored common practices, assessment approaches, and ecosystem impacts with the goal of improving restoration outcomes. Watch [...]
Planning for the Chesapeake Bay Watershed of the Future The Chesapeake Bay watershed is a dynamic system; change is occurring on scales from tidal to geological. Human development has a tremendous impact on the environment around us, and in turn, our communities are impacted by the environment through heat islands, flooding, pollution, and more. [...]
