A New Director For the Chesapeake Bay Program, And Progress On Cleanup Efforts

The Chesapeake Bay Program has a new director. The organization, which frames itself as “a unique regional partnership that has led and directed the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay since 1983” on its website, will now be led by former Delaware environmental secretary Nicholas DiPasquale.
More from the AP:

Nicholas DiPasquale was Delaware’s environmental secretary from 1999 to 2002 and most recently worked as a private environmental consultant.
EPA Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin announced the appointment Friday, saying DiPasquale’s expertise will serve the EPA and its partners as the program accelerates efforts to safeguard the bay.
The program coordinates restoration in the six-state watershed covering Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Delaware, New York and the District of Columbia.

Meantime, in other Chesapeake Bay news, Deputy Agriculture Secretary tells the AP a federal cleanup effort is making progress:

She pointed to estimates released by the department earlier this year that 88 percent of the cropland within the watershed is using some form of reduced tillage. The EPA’s so-called pollution diet for the bay calls for steep reductions in sediment that flows into the bay with other pollutants, fouling its waters.
“That’s a remarkable result,” Merrigan said, “and evidence of a strong conservation ethic of farmers in this region. We were really surprised that it was this high, which means that some of our messaging is getting out there.”

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