Chesapeake Bay: Pennsylvania called 'weakest link' by Bay Foundation. Maryland weighs in
Pennsylvania's failure to address water pollution is a threat to the entire Chesapeake Bay, which if not better addressed in the new cleanup plan could trigger EPA controls or a lawsuit, according to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.
The environmental nonprofit recently released a report judging the progress and future plans of the three key Chesapeake Bay states — Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania. It called Pennsylvania "far off track" from the regions clean water goals.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan followed this move by sending a letter to Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf that expressed concern over Pennsylvania's plan.
Each of the six states in the bay watershed recently developed draft plans to give a concrete outline for how pollution reduction will be accomplished by 2025. The states —Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New York, Virginia and West Virginia — are legally bound to meet specific targets by that year as part of the federally mandated Chesapeake Bay clean up process.