Population Growth
Chesapeake Bay Program — November 4, 2024
Overview
With its strong economy, diverse communities and rich natural and historic resources, it’s no wonder that more than 18 and a half million people call the Chesapeake Bay watershed home. But the region’s rapid rate of population growth has raised concern over whether the watershed can continue to sustain the plants, animals and people that live here.
How does population growth impact the Chesapeake Bay?
Land development
With a larger population comes more homes, roads, parking lots, stores and other developments. This growth often comes at the expense of important natural spaces, like forests or wetlands, which have to be cut down for space to be made. Forests and wetlands provide a variety of benefits to wildlife and the Bay. Both forests and wetlands are crucial for absorbing nutrient runoff which would otherwise pollute waterways and cause dead zones to form.
Stormwater runoff
In more developed areas, there are also more impervious surfaces, such as roads and parking lots. As opposed to natural land like forests, impervious surfaces do not absorb rainfall and instead send it directly into storm drains, rivers and streams, picking up nutrients, sediment and other pollutants along the way. Impervious surfaces can also lead to increased flooding, because there is less land to absorb rainfall and storm drains cannot handle all the water.
Wastewater
A larger population means more wastewater from homes, schools, businesses, farms, industrial facilities and other areas. Wastewater treatment plants are used to treat this water before it’s released back into rivers, streams and the Bay. But treatment plants can fail, either due to outdated technology or because they can’t keep up with the increased wastewater. Failing treatment plants release nutrient and sediment pollution into our waterways.
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