Excess sediment is having an adverse effect on the living resources and associated habitat of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed. Submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) has declined drastically over the past 30 years because of poor water clarity, which is associated with excess sediment and nutrients. As a result, the Chesapeake Bay was listed as an impaired water body in 2000 under the Clean Water Act. The CBP developed a goal to have 185,000 acres of SAV by 2012, which is about double of the amount measured in 2005. The CBP needs additional information to understand the factors affecting SAV and its habitat to meet this restoration goal. The USGS will provide information through:

• Further defining the sources, and relating the impact, of nutrient and sediment loads from the watershed to changes in light conditions needed for SAV
• Documenting the factors affecting the presence of different species of SAV and the implications for restoration