Chesapeake Bay

Water Quality and TMDL Development

Localities in Hampton Roads and HRPDC staff are working together to clean up the Chesapeake Bay through a variety of efforts:

• Local government representative to the Chesapeake Bay Program's (CBP's) Urban Stormwater Working Group, co-chair of the Land Use Work Group, at-large member of the Water Quality Goal Implementation Team, member of the BMP ad-hoc Verification Team, and participant in other Bay Program partnership work groups. Links to all meetings can be found on the CBP’s calendar page.
• Collaborate with Virginia DEQ and partners to reduce loads of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment for the Chesapeake Bay TMDL
• Participated in the Commonwealth’s Phase III WIP effort to address loads in unregulated developed, septic, and forest sectors; conducted stakeholder meetings and produced a final report
• Coordination of the Regional Water Quality Monitoring Program between Phase I MS4 localities, USGS, and HRSD
• The CBP and its partners have updated the current model, CAST21 (Chesapeake Assessment Scenario Tool), used to assess progress. A new model, Phase 7, is being developed for assessments after 2025.

Chesapeake Bay Current Events

• The CBP’s Land Use Workgroup, in coordination with the Chesapeake Conservancy, is updating land use and land cover at high resolution.
• The CBP’s Local Government Advisory Committee developed a Local Government Guide to the Chesapeake Bay.
• In accordance with a Phase III WIP initiative, DEQ developed a State Lands WIP, including mapping state lands and addressing BMP implementation needs.
• DEQ submitted milestones to EPA to mark progress in reaching TMDL goals.
• Track the goals and outcomes on the Chesapeake Progress page.

Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act (Bay Act)

• The Commonwealth established the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Area (CBPA) Designation and Management Regulations, which apply to all localities in Tidewater, in 1988. 
• CBPA programs and policies were adopted to protect and improve water quality in the Chesapeake Bay by reducing nonpoint source pollution through effective land use management.
• The intent of the Bay Act is to balance reasonable development interests and water quality improvement.
• The regulatory amendments to incorporate the impacts of climate change and to include the preservation of mature trees became effective on September 29, 2021. The Tidewater localities have three years to incorporate the changes.    HRPDC staff continue to serve on the Stakeholder Advisory Group convened by the Department of Environmental Quality to provide input on the implementation of the new requirements. 
• HRGEO houses the resource protection area (RPA) for all Hampton Roads localities subject to CBPA, and askHRgreen.org has new homeowner outreach information and a mapping application to help locate the RPA and provide contact information for the local staff.

Links to locality CBPA programs and resources