Chesapeake Bay Conservation

Updated 04/15/2008

The Chesapeake Bay Watershed is the largest estuary in North America and encompasses part of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia and West Virginia. Agriculture and non-federal forested lands account for more than half of the land use in the Bay watershed. 

NRCS provides technical assistance to farmers in the Chesapeake Bay watershed to plan and apply conservation practices to improve water quality, restore wetlands, and enhance wildlife habitat.  Financial assistance is provided through Farm Bill programs to help implement these practices.

Agriculture has been doing its part to improve natural resource conditions in the Bay watershed. Farmers are planting stream buffers for cleaner water, fencing cattle out of streams, properly managing manure, and installing other conservation practices.


For more information on conservation in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed: