Wilmington – On August 3, 2009, the Senate Environment and Public Works Water and Wildlife Subcommittee held a hearing called, “A Renewed Commitment to Protecting the Chesapeake Bay: Reauthorizing the Chesapeake Bay Program.” I am not a member of the subcommittee, but Chairman Ben Cardin (D-MD) was gracious enough to invite me, given Delaware’s interest in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

As our nation’s largest estuary, the Chesapeake Bay supports an immense diversity of plant and animal life. The Bay is a prime example of the fact that ecological and economic significance go hand in hand: The Chesapeake yields more fish and shellfish than any other American estuary, providing jobs and supporting our regional economy.

Unfortunately, as we know all too well, the Bay and much of its tributaries are not in good health. Excess amounts of nitrogen and phosphorous pose an especially grave threat to the ecosystem, as they destroy habitat and kill aquatic life. This oversupply of nutrients, also known as nutrient loading, is historically the main cause of the Bay’s degradation.

In the 1970s, former Senator Charles Mathias (R-MD) championed an effort to understand better the causes of the declining quality of the Chesapeake Bay’s water and habitat. This effort ultimately resulted in the creation of the Chesapeake Bay Program, which is a partnership between the federal government, state and local governments, educational institutions, citizens, and advocacy groups – all working together in an effort to reduce pollution and restore the Bay to health.

Ever since 1983, Chesapeake Bay Program partners have signed agreements to reduce nutrient loading, among other goals. The most recent compact – the Chesapeake 2000 Agreement – was the most comprehensive, ambitious agreement to date. As Delaware’s Governor at the time, I joined the governor of New York in signing a Memorandum of Understanding, formally committing our states to working with the Chesapeake Bay Partners to achieve water quality goals.

Although Delaware does not border the Bay proper, more than a third of our state lands drain into the Chesapeake Bay. As a result, I felt then – just as I do now – that it is our responsibility to work with our friends throughout the watershed to safeguard the Bay’s health.

The same year that we signed the Memorandum of Understanding, Delaware enacted a nutrient management law to regulate on-farm nutrients from the millions of chickens who call Delaware home. The law requires nutrient management plans for the majority of Delaware’s farms. It also requires our state’s farmers to obtain certification for implementing those plans that they adopted and to report on the application of nutrients to farmland. 

Today, the First State is working with federal officials to strengthen our nutrient management program to better ensure that key environmental outcomes are being achieved. This unique approach – crafted in consultation with Delaware’s farmers – is, I believe, an effective way to protect water and environmental quality.

In addition to the challenges of nutrient loading, the Chesapeake Bay watershed is threatened by population growth, sprawling development and the impacts of climate change – including sea level rise and saltwater intrusion.

Not to be overlooked is the serious impact of air pollution on water quality and the overall health of the Chesapeake Bay region. Believe it or not, nearly a quarter of the nitrogen pollution flowing into the Bay comes from the atmosphere.

Nitrogen emitted into the air by polluters can also negatively impact the growth and survival of plant and animal species in and around surface waters when it comes back down. Mercury is another very serious threat, as it is responsible for more fish contamination than any other pollutant.   

Simply put, our goals for water and ecosystem quality will not be met unless we also address the contributions of air pollution. My Senate colleagues and I are working hard on this front, and I look forward to unveiling revised clean air legislation with bipartisan support next month after the Congress reconvenes.

At the Senate Water and Wildlife Subcommittee hearing earlier this month, we heard from eleven witnesses who shared their recommendations about the Chesapeake Bay Program from non-federal jurisdictions as well as the private sector. It was my pleasure to welcome two witnesses from Delaware: Secretary Collin O’Mara, head of our Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, and Mr. Joe Gannon III, Vice President of Envirocorp, which is based out of Harrington. 

There is a lot of fine work taking place in Delaware to educate the public and form grassroots coalitions to protect the watershed. In Delaware, we’re faced with no easy task: more than 90 percent of our state’s waterways are considered "impaired.” The most common impairments come from hard-to-control, non-point sources, like runoff from fields, golf courses, our lawns, roads and older septic systems. 

I applaud the work of Delaware’s Tributary Action Teams, which are creating Pollution Control Strategies, tailor-made for each of our state's watersheds. The most important element of Delaware’s strategy is the engagement with citizens – allowing local residents to weigh the merits of various proposals – and collaboration with stakeholders and advocacy groups. 

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