Maryland officials sign updated Maryland Coastal Bays Program’s Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan.
Earlier this week, Maryland officials signed the Maryland Coastal Bays Program’s Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan, a 10-year initiative meant to protect and restore the state’s Coastal Bays, focusing on water quality, habitat preservation, and climate resilience. The effort brings together state, local, and federal partners to address pollution, development pressures, and environmental degradation.
Key actions include reducing nutrient runoff, restoring wetlands and seagrasses, managing stormwater, and boosting community engagement. The plan sets measurable goals and supports broader regional efforts like Chesapeake Bay restoration.
According to Coast TV,
Kevin Smith, executive director of the Maryland Coastal Bays Program, said while progress has been made, the region continues to face serious threats.
“Recently one of the challenges that we’ve had are island loss and marsh loss,” Smith said. “A lot of tidal marsh due to sea level rise and other factors.”
The Maryland Coastal Bays Program
The Maryland Coastal Bays Program (MCBP) is one of 28 National Estuary Programs (NEP) across the country that receives EPA funding to work toward the restoration and protection of “estuaries of National significance.” The Coastal Bays watershed is an important natural resource, supporting abundant wildlife and a wealth of aquatic resources in a relaxing rural atmosphere unique to the mid-Atlantic region. As one of the most ecologically diverse regions in the state, the collective watershed of these bays encompasses approximately 175 square miles of Maryland’s coastal plain.