Chesapeake Bay Watershed Program
New York and the Chesapeake Bay
New York's portion of the Chesapeake Bay watershed is made up of the Upper Susquehanna River watershed and Chemung River watershed. Together these two watersheds form the headwaters of the Chesapeake Bay and cover much of New York's Southern Tier. In total, some or all of 19 New York counties are in the Chesapeake Bay watershed: Allegany, Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Herkimer, Livingston, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, Ontario, Otsego, Schoharie, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins, and Yates.
About the Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It is home to more than 3,600 different species of plants and animals and produces nearly 500 million pounds of seafood per year.
Watershed facts:
- Area: 64,000 square miles including portions of 6 states (Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia) and the District of Columbia
- NY area: 6,250 square miles in 19 counties
- Population: 16 million people live in the watershed
- NY population: About 650,000 people live in the New York portion of the Chesapeake Bay watershed
- Source: The headwaters of the estuary are the Upper Susquehanna and Chemung Rivers in New York
Water Quality Issues
Since 1980, excess sediment and nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus) have degraded the Bay's water quality. The main nutrient sources are sewage, cattle manure, inorganic fertilizer and atmospheric nitrogen deposition. Most of the sediment comes from agriculture, stream bank erosion and construction.
A Plan to Improve Water Quality
All 6 states (and the District of Columbia) in the Bay watershed, including New York, are developing and implementing a Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) that describes how each state will meet nutrient and sediment loads outlined in the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) developed by EPA.
To develop New York's WIP, DEC partnered with the Upper Susquehanna Coalition (USC) to provide local input and technical support. The USC includes representatives of 16 New York counties and 3 Pennsylvania counties in the Bay watershed.
Development of New York's Watershed Implementation Plan
Watershed Implementation Plans describe how each state will meet nutrient and sediment loads outlined in the Chesapeake Bay TMDL.
- Winter 2011/2012 -- New York will submit its Draft Phase II WIP
- December 2010 -- New York submitted its Final Phase I WIP (PDF) (3.0 MB) for the Chesapeake TMDL
Development of the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL)
A Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) defines the capacity of a waterbody to absorb a pollutant and still meet water quality standards. EPA developed a Chesapeake Bay TMDL for nutrients and sediment. The WIP is New York's plan for meeting the nutrient and sediment loads outlined in the TMDL.
- December 2010 -- EPA established the final Chesapeake Bay TMDL
- November 2010 -- New York submitted comments to EPA on the Chesapeake Bay TMDL
- September 2010 -- EPA issued a draft Chesapeake Bay TMDL for public comment
- September 2009 -- EPA announced its plan to establish a Chesapeake Bay TMDL
More About New York and the Chesapeake Bay TMDL
More information on the Chesapeake Bay and our effort in New York can be obtained from the Chesapeake Bay Program and the Upper Susquehanna Coalition. See "Links Leaving DEC's Website" at right.
To view the Chesapeake Bay TMDL visit the EPA's website. See "Links Leaving DEC's Website" at right.
DEC Chesapeake Bay Watershed Program Contact Information
Jacqueline Lendrum, Program Coordinator
Phone: 518-402-8086
Email Jacqueline Lendrum
More about Chesapeake Bay Watershed Program:
- NY and the Chesapeake Bay Large Map - Large version of map for NY and the Chesapeake Bay.
