State of the Bay briefing: agencies cite long-term gains, warn funding and stormwater pose new risks

Maryland officials and Bay partners told the House Environment and Transportation Committee on Jan. 27 that the Chesapeake Bay has shown measurable long-term improvement but faces immediate and growing risks from stormwater, shifting climate patterns and uncertain funding.

Lisonbee Colden, Maryland executive director for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, recounted recent wins — including reductions in nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment, reopening more than 2,500 stream miles for migrating fish, and completion of large-scale oyster restoration in five tributaries — while stressing that 2025 was not a finish line. Colden said stormwater is the only major sector trending in the wrong direction and urged lawmakers to support the agencies and programs that implement restoration actions in the FY2027 budget.

Dave Namazi of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science presented the Bay report card, which shows a statistically significant improvement over 20 years despite a modest year‑to‑year decline. Namazi said the report card now incorporates new indicators and that the team is working to add human-health and fish indicators. He also summarized a legislature-requested oyster substrate study that found many alternative substrates can work in lab and field trials and noted that Horn Point hatchery operations face funding uncertainty amid federal cuts.

Anna Killeus of the Chesapeake Bay Commission described the recently refreshed Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement, which consolidates previous goals into four core watershed goals and 21 outcomes, sets a 15‑year horizon to 2040 with a midpoint review in 2033, and will produce management strategies and governance changes to meet those targets. Killeus also said the partnership is exploring how to formally include federally recognized tribes as signatories.

State agency leaders highlighted specific investments and program priorities. Department of Natural Resources Secretary Josh Kurtz described Maryland’s Whole Watershed pilots (five watersheds selected in March 2025) and said the state seeded those pilots with roughly $11.5 million that attracted matching local and private funds. Kurtz flagged the striped bass juvenile index as a serious concern and described pilot measures to address invasive blue catfish, including a commercial electrofishing trial he said showed promising results.

Maryland Department of Environment Secretary Serena McElwain called the Conowingo Dam settlement with Constellation — which she said brought $340 million for water‑quality projects, dredging and fish passage — a major accomplishment. McElwain said Maryland has met phosphorus and sediment goals and reached about 97% of its nitrogen reduction target, while warning that the Bay Restoration Fund’s scheduled sunset could erase some gains without a replacement. She also said MDE is modernizing stormwater regulations and finalized a 2025 stormwater permit with the State Highway Administration that she said will restore 4,000 acres of impervious area.

Maryland Department of Agriculture Secretary Kevin Addicks described agricultural conservation results — a record 128,000 acres planned this season, 847,000 acres under conservation plans statewide, a cover‑crop program that reduced nearly 3.5 million pounds of nitrogen last year, and new incentive efforts (LEAF) to reward producers adopting climate‑smart practices.

Committee members pressed agencies on specific items: whether high‑volume overflow events (Back River, Patapsco, and the Blue Plains DC interceptor break) are captured in long‑term charts, the lifecycle and future upgrade needs of wastewater treatment plants, staffing and compliance at large plants, and the planned management responses for striped bass. Agency officials said the long‑term charts include 2021–22 overflow anomalies, that many treatment plants will reach a roughly 20‑year lifecycle for upgrades and that continued investment is required to maintain gains. MDE staff said consent decrees and administrative permit extensions are in place while public comments on permit renewals are being reviewed.

The presentations and exchanges left two clear policy signals to lawmakers: (1) Maryland has demonstrable restoration progress that depends on sustained and, in some cases, renewed funding streams; and (2) stormwater, climate-driven extreme events and aging infrastructure are pressing vulnerabilities that require regulatory updates, targeted investments and continued multi‑agency coordination.

The committee scheduled follow‑ups and asked staff to circulate additional data requested during questioning.