Coastal ecosystem assessment of Chesapeake Bay Watersheds : land use patterns and river conditions Chesapeake Bay ecosystem assessment

"In coastal and estuarine regions, land use can have a profound impact on aquatic ecosystem health. In the Chesapeake Bay watershed, agriculture and urbanization have transformed major portions of the landscape, though some areas of undeveloped land remain. This document assesses the health of six Bay tributaries with different land use profiles via a suite of water quality and biological condition variables. Linkages are then explored between these scored variables and land use in the various watersheds. This investigation began in 2007 with three mesohaline (moderate salinity) rivers in the upper Chesapeake Bay, each dominated by a unique land use pattern. The Corsica, Magothy, and Rhode Rivers were chosen to represent systems dominated by agricultural, residential, and mixed-use lands, respectively. Assessment of these three rivers continued annually through 2011. From 2010 to 2012, three additional oligohaline (low salinity) rivers were studied. These three--the Sassafras, Middle, and Nanjemoy Rivers--represented the effects of predominantly agricultural, urban, and forested lands, respectively"--Executive Summary. [doi:10.7289/V5/TM-NOS-NCCOS-207 (https://doi.org/10.7289/V5/TM-NOS-NCCOS-207)] Leight, A., R.Trippe III, L. Gonsalves, J. Jacobs, S. McLaughlin, G. Messick. Title from title screen (viewed March 15, 2016). "December 2015." Includes bibliographical references. 2015 NOS (National Ocean Service) NCCOS (National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science) Library http://doi.org/10.7289/V5/TM-NOS-NCCOS-207 Public Domain 1935