Maryland agencies outline Chesapeake Bay restoration funding, Conowingo work and new LEAF farm incentives

Maryland natural-resources and environmental officials told the Transportation and the Environment Subcommittee on Feb. 5 that Chesapeake Bay restoration work is shifting focus from wastewater fixes to agricultural and living‑habitat strategies and that budget choices and new programs will shape progress beyond 2025.

The committee heard a Department of Legislative Services overview that framed the restoration effort around the Environmental Protection Agency’s total maximum daily load (TMDL) targets, state watershed implementation plans and two‑year milestones. DLS highlighted recent changes in sectoral contributions to nitrogen loads and recommended narrative reporting and long‑term trust‑fund planning.

“Big picture, Chesapeake Bay restoration process is guided by the total maximum daily load,” DLS analyst Andrew Gray said, summarizing the modeling and monitoring tools that guide where Maryland targets money and work.

DLS and agency witnesses said that improvements at the Back River and Patapsco wastewater treatment plants reduced wastewater’s share of nitrogen loads, moving the largest remaining reductions to agriculture — especially on the Eastern Shore — and prompting a greater focus on farming practices and living‑habitat work such as oyster restoration and living shorelines.

Deputy Secretary Suzanne Dorsey of the Maryland Department of the Environment said Maryland’s recent monitoring and modeling prompted the shift. “We had the highest grade that the Bay has gotten in over 20 years. It’s a C‑plus,” Dorsey said, adding that Maryland met 18 of 31 outcomes from the 2025 agreement and is leaning into innovations such as pay‑for‑performance…