HRPDC staff is pleased to announce that the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) has responded to local concerns that the land use data in the Bay models does not match local data by establishing a new Land Use Workgroup.  HRPDC senior planner, Jennifer Tribo, is serving as the co-chair of the new Land Use Workgroup for the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) along with Karl Berger from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments. The mission of the workgroup is “to ensure that scientifically and locally credible land use data informs the suite of Chesapeake Bay Program models and accounting systems”. The first meeting of the Land Use Workgroup was September 17, 2012. To read more about the workgroup’s activities, check out the webpage - http://www.chesapeakebay.net/groups/group/land_use_workgroup.

The Chesapeake Bay Program is organized into committees, goal implementation teams, workgroups and action teams (org chart link -http://www.chesapeakebay.net/about/organized). When the Bay Program receives comments that identify a problem or suggest a change in methodology, the CBP assigns the issue to a workgroup or action team. Sometimes a new workgroup, like the Land Use Workgroup, is created. Members of workgroups are selected from volunteers and nominations. EPA and State agency staff are always part of a workgroup but rarely chair the workgroups. HRPDC staff encourages local governments to follow the Bay Program workgroups and subcommittees and provide input as policies are being developed. The workgroups’ recommendations must be reviewed and accepted by goal implementation teams and the Principals Staff Committee but typically they are accepted with few revisions.