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these laws — make no mistake. But the battle for both the Potomac and the Chesapeake is far from over.
The primary challenge remaining &>in "Cleaning Up the Bay" is the tremendous load of nutrients delivered to the Bay by its rivers. Nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, are normal and necessary components of natural water systems. However, there are excess nutrients entering the Bay from its rivers, clouding the water, choking out underwater grasses, and destroying crucial habitat for fish and other wildlife. The beauty and productivity of the Bay has been reduced, and the viability of local economies, such as the fishing, boating and tourism, has declined.
Most of these excess nutrients are human-related; originating from agricultural operations, over-fertilized lawns, faulty septic systems, and increasingly, from sewage treatment plants. The diverse nature of nutrient pollution requires us to work with the "good guys" — farmers, developers, small businesses, municipalities and individuals — you and me. Many of us have already altered our activities in beneficial ways, but we still must do more.
The destructive impact of nutrient pollution on the Chesapeake Bay has been recognized for at least 15 years. In 1983, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, the District of Columbia, the Chesapeake Bay Commission, and EPA all signed the Chesapeake Bay Agreement, a voluntary partnership establishing the Chesapeake Bay Program. In 1987 these Bay Program partners committed to reduce nutrients entering the Bay by 40 percent by the year 2000.
A key step in honoring that commitment to restore the Bay is the installation of Biological Nutrient Removal (BNR> technology at publicly owned sewage treatment plants. Installing BNR is not particularly difficult in most cases. Of 64 major publicly owned treatment plants in Maryland, 23 now have nutrient removal, and the rest have committed to BNR by 2000. The District of
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