Two Pennsylvania officials said the state will work harder to reduce pollution runoff into the Susquehanna River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay, reports Lancaster Online. The river is the main source of fresh water for the bay. “A Chesapeake Bay reboot is needed in Pennsylvania, and we plan to focus resources and technical assistance, reinvigorate partnerships and create a culture of compliance in order to protect Pennsylvania’s waters and the waters of the bay,” said John Quigley, head of the state Environmental Protection Department. He said the state would take steps that include stronger enforcement.
Quigley and state Agriculture Secretary Russell Reading spoke at a meeting of the Chesapeake Bay Executive Council. “It’s time to re-start the conservation” with agriculture, Reading said, noting that: “The health of our watersheds is tied to the agriculture industry in Pennsylvania, and the health of our agriculture industry is tied to the quality of our waterways.” Last month, the EPA said Pennsylvania was substantially short of its goals for reducing agricultural runoff.
On July 6, a U.S. appellate court upheld the EPA’s “pollution diet” intended to reduce water pollution in the bay.