USGS Chesapeake Bay Activities COAST

This component of COAST provides a process and information to help decision makers evaluate the factors affecting implementation of management practices and water-quality change to adopt more effective management actions in the future. There is general information about the major factors affecting water quality:

Population and land-use change.
Implementation of management actions.
River flow variability and climate change.
Watershed process that influence the lag time between management actions and ecosystem response.

However, more detailed information will be needed to evaluate these factors at more local scales.

Decision process to evaluate change and adjust actions:

Identify and evaluate factors affecting progress toward implement of management practices.
Evaluate relation between implementation of practices and factors affecting water-quality changes.
Links to Information on Evaluating the Effectiveness of Implementation Practices

Learn about the potential lag time between implementing management actions and water-quality response.
Review information on pressures affecting the Bay ecosystem.
STAC publication on understanding the lag time between management practices and water quality.
USGS factsheet on ground water influences on nitrogen.
Decide on adjustments needed to improve implementation of planned practices.
Determine if new practices need to be considered. If so, go back to the COAST component: "Choose and implement practices" to consider alternatives.
Determine if additional changes need to be made to management objectives and strategies.

Learn More:

Pressures affecting the Bay

USGS Circular: Synthesis of Chesapeake Bay Science and Implications for Ecosystem Management

Water Quality: Evaluate Change to Adjust Actions