By Stephen Smoot
In the late 1990s, West Virginia Governor Cecil Underwood gave final approval for the state to join the Chesapeake Bay regional group of states whose watersheds empty into that body of water. Through the 1980s into the 90s, concerns expanded about blue crab and other commercially fished aquatic species there.
Too many substances that could be used by algae as food flowed through those waters into the Bay, spawning blooms that had the effect of shoving aside native plantlife and reducing animal species to dangerously low levels. West Virginia’s contribution to the problem came in part from old and failing sewer plants, overuse of chicken manure as fertilizer, and other issues.
On implementation, West Virginia bucked the trend followed by the rest of the states in the region. Every other one adopted United States Environmental Protection Agency punitive laws and regulations that used threats of fines to coerce compliance. West Virginia relied instead on third parties (such as Trout Unlimited), voluntary programs, incentives, and moral suasion to encourage, rather than punish. The Mountain State has consistently outperformed the other states in reducing pollutants in streams.
Released in recent weeks was the Bay Barometer, an information resource that evaluates the total impact of the program as well as how each state has contributed to them. This comes on the heels of the approved revision of the Chesapeake Bay Agreement last December.
“We’re reporting on the progress of the Watershed Agreement, signed in 2014, and its 10 goals and 31 outcomes. In some cases, we saw significant progress toward our goals,” shared the Bay Barometer. It added that efforts to restore stream and Bay health have come hand-in-hand with the expansion by over 300 points of areas usable for natural, outdoors recreation in fishing, hunting, hiking, camping, and other endeavors fun for residents and tourists alike.
Some areas have more work to complete. The publication said of those that “in other cases, such as forest buffer plantings and wetland conservation, we see the opportunity to better leverage resources and technical assistance to meet our goals.”
Restoring natural environments, such as those supporting fisheries and aquatic plant life, has come with success. Chesapeake Bay planners set parameters that extended from a minimal baseline of reproductive replacement for specific plants and animals to an optimal target point.
To reference Ricky Van Shelton, success comes from keeping it “between the lines.”
Blue crabs, the most recognizable aquatic harvest from the Chesapeake Bay, faced the biggest threats prior to the agreement. In 2014, the population sat below the minimum replacement level, but never again after that. In only three years, the population surged to well beyond the target population.
Once populations stabilized, species management practices commenced. That included setting percentage quotas for fishing and outlawing the harvesting of females. These practices proved effective in the Bering Sea crab fisheries over the years as well. Management also means moving beyond human-created effects on the populations. Changes in precipitation from year to year and what rainwater brings from the land also can help or hinder crab reproduction.
So far, the blue crab populations have only fluctuated between the lines outside of 2014 and 2017, the year in which the population exceeded the target.
Oyster populations also benefited from the work of the program. Like blue crabs in Maryland, oysters serve as an important part of the culinary history of Virginia. Unlike the somewhat better known Plymouth Plantation Thanksgiving, a thanksgiving meal tradition from the Old Dominion’s earliest days features oysters and ham. Many rural organizations still hold November oyster and ham dinners in both the Virginias.
“In the summer of 2025,” reported the Bay Barometer, “Chesapeake Bay Program partners officially completed the outcome of oyster reef restoration in all 10 tributaries as set forth in the 2014 Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement—and an 11th “bonus” tributary.” This represented the largest oyster environment restoration project in history.
Submerged Aquatic Vegetation also received attention in both restoration and management, but findings from observations could affect communities hundreds of miles away. The health of submerged aquatic wildlife serves as part of the foundation for the animal ecosystem. In 2018, abnormally high levels of rain simultaneously reduced water salinity while also raising the levels of both phosphorous and nitrogen.
Nearly 40 percent of the underwater plantlife died off as a result. Since then, only 50 percent of the lost plantlife has returned.
Phosphorous issues may likely lead to stricter regulation of waste water and sewage treatment facilities throughout the region. For nearly two years, the Town of Franklin has worked to get ahead of expected regulatory changes through planning a new sewage treatment facility that could easily and less expensively be modified when phosphorous regulations hit.
According to the publication, “from 2014 to 2023, total phosphorus trends were degrading at more stations overall (47%) than improving (24%), with 29% showing no discernable trend.”
It also appears that the Mountain State may serve as a very limited source for these pollutants, since “as of 2024, West Virginia has achieved 100 percent of its 2025 reduction goals for nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment.”
Tree planting, especially in riparian zones where water typically meets land, and also wastewater treatment facility upgrades, have done the most to reduce both phosphorous and nitrogen pollution. The Bay program makes forest preservation and planting in riparian zones a priority. Trees from their leaves to their roots help to filter pollutants from the air and water.
West Virginia efforts have focused on enhancing the environments of the black duck, brook trout, wetlands, and trees. Black ducks have not been made a priority, with only four percent of the goal of habitat restoration accomplished across the region, of that less than two acres in the Mountain State.
That said, the habitat for West Virginia’s state fish has expanded. “Between 2016 and 2024, West Virginia saw a net increase of 96 square miles of habitat occupied by naturally reproducing brook trout, contributing to the 12,823 square miles of occupied brook trout habitat across the watershed,” the Barometer indicated. Trout Unlimited and other organizations have contributed to the restoration.
