There have been many local TMDLs written in Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay watershed. How do they relate to this Bay TMDL?
The local TMDLs were done to address local water quality issues. The Bay TMDL is being developed to address the larger, Bay watershed. While some previously-approved TMDLs for local stream segments or waters were based on reducing nutrients or sediment, most were for other pollutants. In contrast, the Bay TMDL will be based on protecting the Bay and its tidal waters from excessive nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment. For waters that have both local TMDLs and Bay TMDLs for nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment, the more stringent of the TMDLs will apply. In some cases, the reductions required to meet local conditions shown in existing TMDLs may be more stringent than those needed to meet Bay requirements, and vice versa. In local waters within the Chesapeake Bay watershed where TMDLs have been developed for other pollutants, those TMDLs will remain in place along with the Bay TMDL to address the nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment impairments.
Related Questions
- How will the Bay TMDL affect permitted facilities in Virginia, particularly those that fall under the Nutrient Enriched Waters and Nutrient Trading programs?
- Does the City of Chesapeake have a local ordinance as required by Virginia State Code 15.2-968.1?
- What is the Local Plan and how does it relate to my planning application?