The Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the Chesapeake Conservancy both praised lawmakers and Gov. Shapiro for including $50 million in funding for the Clean Streams Fund in the new FY 2024-25 state budget to support on-farm conservation practices and other local water quality improvement projects.

Chesapeake Bay Foundation

“We are thrilled that the Governor and legislators have made increased and sustained investments in the new budget for family farms and cleaner rivers and streams. It is a watershed moment like no other for Pennsylvania,” said Julia Krall, Pennsylvania Executive Director for CBF.

"It was a historic day when the General Assembly created the Clean Streams Fund, which invested in ACAP,” Ms. Krall added. “The extension in the new budget is momentous. Our elected leaders have shown their commitment to creating a legacy of clean water, healthy soils, and resilient communities for future generations.”

On Tuesday, Governor Shapiro praised Pennsylvania’s progress in reducing pollution to local waters and the Chesapeake Bay as noted in a recent report.

“We are seeing real results and improvement in the Chesapeake Bay,” the Governor said. “We’re not talking about fixing the Bay anymore, we are fixing the Bay, and we are making sure Pennsylvania does its fair share.”   Read more here.

Governor Shapiro also made it clear that the Commonwealth plans to continue its clean water work for the long haul. “You have my commitment that this work will continue,” he added. “Pennsylvania is all in.”  Read more here.

The Clean Streams Fund tackles the top three sources of stream impairment in the Commonwealth: some agricultural activities, acid mine drainage, and urban/suburban stormwater runoff. 

The new funding in the fiscal year 2024-25 plan extends the Agriculture Conservation Assistance Program. Otherwise, the initial historic federal investments would have been exhausted by the end of 2026.

For more on Chesapeake Bay-related issues in Pennsylvania, visit the Chesapeake Bay Foundation-PA webpage.  Click Here to sign up for Pennsylvania updates (bottom of left column).  Click Here to support their work.

Also visit the Keystone 10 Million Trees Partnership to learn how you can help clean water grow on trees.

Chesapeake Conservancy

“Chesapeake Conservancy welcomes the great news within Pennsylvania’s 2024-25 Budget, which includes $50 million in funding to the Clean Streams Fund, extending the Agriculture Conservation Assistance Program (ACAP)," said Joel Dunn, President and CEO of the Conservancy.

“The Chesapeake conservation movement has tangible proof that Pennsylvania’s focus on stream restoration is working at places like Turtle Creek in Union County, where last spring, two stream segments were removed from the EPA’s list of agriculturally impaired streams after just a decade of partnership work and dedicated funding.

“As the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science recently gave the Bay its highest grade in more than 20 years, a C+, we are grateful for this continued significant funding in Pennsylvania’s budget for stream restoration.  Read more here.

“Starting in 2019, partners in Pennsylvania, including local, state, and federal governments; conservation districts; nonprofits; universities; and others, envisioned a rapid stream delisting program to make the most of limited resources using high-resolution hydrography data.

“These partners are now working across 57 streams in seven Pennsylvania counties, and tangible results are on the horizon.

“In fact, just four years later, the state of Maryland looked to scale this method of success with the passage of the Whole Watershed Act. Thanks to the Chesapeake Bay Program and a partnership with Chesapeake Conservancy and our Chesapeake Tributaries Initiative, improved hyper-resolution hydrography data will soon be available to all the states in the watershed.

“Thank you, Governor Shapiro and bipartisan leaders, for your continued dedication to stream restoration. This is how we can save the Bay.”

Visit the Chesapeake Conservancy website to learn more about their initiatives, programs, upcoming events and how you can become involved.  Click Here to sign up for regular updates.

Visit DEP’s Chesapeake Bay Watershed webpage to learn more about cleaning up rivers and streams in Pennsylvania's portion of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.  Click Here to sign up for regular updates on Pennsylvania’s progress.

How Clean Is Your Stream?

The draft 2024 report has an interactive report viewer that allows you to zoom in to your own address to see if the streams near you are impaired and why.

Click Here to check out your streams.  Click Here for a tutorial on using the viewer.

(Photo: Restored segment of Turtle Creek in Union County.  Click Here for video on project.)

Resource Links:

-- Final State Budget Includes $50 Million For Clean Streams Fund; New SPEED Permit Review Program; Support For DEP Oil & Gas Program  [PaEN]

-- University Of Maryland Chesapeake Bay & Watershed Report Card Shows The Same (Watershed) Or Improving (Bay) Water Quality  [PaEN]

[Posted: July 13, 2024]

7/15/2024