Narrated presentation that provides a unique synthesis of the story of nutrient water quality in the Susquehanna watershed.
Science to Inform Management Priorities from Loads to Endpoints (SIMPLE)
Stakeholder Engagement
The SIMPLE team shares scientific insights with Chesapeake Bay stakeholders and uses stakeholder feedback to guide new activities.
Priority Questions
The SIMPLE team works to address priority stakeholder questions to help inform nutrient- and sediment-reducing management activities.
Data-Driven Decision Making
The SIMPLE team uses load and trend data from nontidal Chesapeake Bay rivers and streams to learn about nutrient and sediment conditions.
Science Communication
The SIMPLE team summarizes new insights about water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed to inform management activities.
Resource managers are working to improve water-quality in the Chesapeake to benefit the people who live in the region and the birds, fish, and other animals who rely on clean water in the watershed and the Bay. The U.S Geological Survey (USGS) supports resource managers and other Chesapeake stakeholders by providing science that informs restoration and conservation in the Chesapeake region. The USGS SIMPLE team works with resource managers to address their priority questions to help inform nutrient- and sediment-reducing management activities.
This page is where you can learn more about the USGS SIMPLE team. Specifically, what the team has learned, who the team works with, and how to get involved.
Priority Research Questions

The SIMPLE team works to identify and address priority stakeholder questions about water-quality conditions in the Chesapeake. These questions differ across the watershed and change over time, but there are some common questions that the SIMPLE team is focused on. Click below to learn more about the current priority resource questions.
Table of Contents
- What is the goal of the SIMPLE Team?
- Need to Know: An Introduction to Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sediment in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Learn More
What is the goal of the SIMPLE Team?

SIMPLE stands for Science to Inform Management Priorities, from Loads to Endpoints.
The SIMPLE team is a group of USGS researchers who are working to provide scientific insights that can help inform water-quality management activities in the Chesapeake. The goal of the SIMPLE team is to identify, address, and share scientific information with Chesapeake stakeholders to inform nutrient and sediment management activities. The team meets this goal by:
- Meeting with stakeholders to identify their priority needs.
- Working with the research community to address priority stakeholder questions
- Sharing scientific insights with stakeholders to help inform water-quality management activities.
The Chesapeake Bay is a large and complex ecosystem. The SIMPLE team works to connect managers with research experts, decision-making tools, and high-quality data.

Need to Know: An Introduction to Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sediment in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment are essential components of healthy aquatic ecosystems. However, excessive amounts of sediment or nutrients can cause negative effects on human health, aquatic life, and ecological conditions. Human activities have contributed to excess amounts of nutrients and sediment in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Therefore, restoration of the Chesapeake Bay relies on reducing nutrients and sediment in watershed rivers and streams that flow into the Bay.
Nutrient Pollution
Nutrient pollution is caused when excess nutrients in the form of nitrogen and phosphorus degrade aquatic ecosystems. Excess nutrients can produce large amounts of algae in a process called eutrophication. Algae can decrease recreational opportunities, impair drinking water, harm aquatic life, and, in some cases, release harmful toxins that are hazardous to human health.

Nitrogen from the air (atmospheric deposition) and phosphorus from the soil (mineral weathering) contribute natural amounts of nutrients to rivers and streams. However, additional nutrients from human activities often exceed natural inputs. In agricultural watersheds, nutrients from fertilizer and manure can seep into the groundwater or be washed overland into local streams. In urban watersheds, nutrients from fertilizer, wastewater, and pet waste can also reach nearby streams. Emissions from vehicles and power plants increase the amount of nitrogen in the air. Nutrients from these nonpoint sources may be stored in the landscape or undergo numerous biogeochemical processes before ever reaching the nearest stream, while point source discharges from wastewater treatment facilities in densely populated areas reach streams directly. Many factors, such as land use, geologic setting, and climatic conditions, affect the movement of nutrients from the landscape to the streams and rivers in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

A Century of Change
Watch the below video for a long-term perspective (1950-2050) on the historical, present, and future drivers of nitrogen in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Read this USGS report for more information.
Suspended Sediment
Suspended sediments are small particles of sand, silt, and clay that are picked up by moving water and become suspended in the water column. Sediment naturally weathers from the landscape into streams, but human activities can increase the amount of sediment that reaches streams. Larger amounts of sediment are typically in agricultural or urban streams than forested streams. Sediment can reach streams after running off the landscape or eroding from streambanks. Once in streams, sediment can be redeposited in the floodplain, stay the streambed, or be delivered further downstream. Streamflow can strongly affect the amount of suspended sediment in streams, with more sediment moved during storm events when streamflow is high. Legacy sediment from historical human activities also affects the amount of sediment in streams.
Sediment can carry nutrients and other pollutants to streams and cause increased stream turbidity, which is a measure of water clarity. Higher amounts of sediment and turbidity reduce light penetration, which can limit recreational opportunities, harm aquatic life, and increase water treatment costs.

Learn More
Now that you know the basics, explore this website and get in touch with the SIMPLE team to learn more about ongoing science to inform management priorities.
Learn more about the SIMPLE Priority Reserach Questions
Read some recent publications
See who the simple team works with
Contact the SIMPLE Team
Learn more about the science the USGS is carrying out which supports Chesapeake Bay management priorities.
New insights for reducing nutrient and sediment loads in agricultural watersheds prioritized for management activities
Monitoring the Effectiveness of Conservation Practices in Small Agricultural Watersheds
Summarizing Science to Inform Management in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Summarizing Scientific Findings for Common Stakeholder Questions to Inform Nutrient and Sediment Management Activities in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Narrated presentation that provides a unique synthesis of the story of nutrient water quality in the Susquehanna watershed.
Narrated presentation that provides a unique, long-term perspective (1950-2050) of the major drivers of nitrogen change up to the present, and forecasts how they may affect nitrogen into the future for the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Information is based off of U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1486.
Narrated presentation that provides a unique, long-term perspective (1950-2050) of the major drivers of nitrogen change up to the present, and forecasts how they may affect nitrogen into the future for the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Information is based off of U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1486.
This page contains a selected list of publications about water-quality conditions and management implications in the Chesapeake. For a complete list of USGS Chesapeake Bay publications, click the green button below.
Fact Sheets and Circulars
Not sure where to start? Check out our easy-to-understand fact sheets and circulars to get an overview of conditions in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed:
- Coming Soon! Fact Sheet - Using Research to Guide Conservation Practices on Loc…
- Fact Sheet - Tracking Status and Trends of Key Stream Health Indicators
- Fact Sheet - Nutrient Trends and Drivers in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Fact Sheet –USGS Chesapeake Science Strategy 2021 - 2025
- Circular - Nitrogen in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed—A Century of Change
- Circular – Understanding Nutrients & Management Implications: The Eastern Shore
Scientific Investigations Reports
USGS Scientific Investigations Reports are publications that share significant data and interpretations of lasting scientific interest.
- Evaluating Water-Quality Drivers in Suburban and Urban Streams
- Spatial Models of Streamflow, Nutrients, and Sediment in the Northeast US
- Drinking Water Standards in Selected Pennsylvania Domestic Wells
- Manure and Fertilizer Inputs to Land in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Patterns of Best Management Practices in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Stream Chemistry in Chesapeake Bay Showcase Watersheds
- Analysis of Nitrate in a Coastal Plain Agricultural Watershed: Bucks Branch
Journal Articles
Journal articles provide a concise summary of important scientific findings.
- Progress in Reducing Nutrient and Sediment Loads to Chesapeake Bay
- Estimated Nitrogen Reductions in Streams with Conservation Practices
- Effect of Load Reductions on Nutrient Improvement in the Chesapeake Bay
- A History of Atmospheric Nitrogen in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- A Synthesis of Sediment Dynamics in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Factors Driving Nutrient Trends in Streams of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Effects of Land Use on Nutrient Concentrations in Pennsylvania Streams
The SIMPLE team works with many different stakeholders to make sure that our science addresses the highest priority needs across the Chesapeake Bay community. Some of the partners we’re working with are listed below. Don’t see your agency represented? We’d love to hear from you!
Jimmy Webber - Virginia and West Virginia regional contact
Alex Soroka - Maryland, Delaware and D.C. regional contact
John Clune - Pennsylvania and New York regional contact
Resource managers are working to improve water-quality in the Chesapeake to benefit the people who live in the region and the birds, fish, and other animals who rely on clean water in the watershed and the Bay. The U.S Geological Survey (USGS) supports resource managers and other Chesapeake stakeholders by providing science that informs restoration and conservation in the Chesapeake region. The USGS SIMPLE team works with resource managers to address their priority questions to help inform nutrient- and sediment-reducing management activities.
This page is where you can learn more about the USGS SIMPLE team. Specifically, what the team has learned, who the team works with, and how to get involved.
Priority Research Questions

The SIMPLE team works to identify and address priority stakeholder questions about water-quality conditions in the Chesapeake. These questions differ across the watershed and change over time, but there are some common questions that the SIMPLE team is focused on. Click below to learn more about the current priority resource questions.
Table of Contents
- What is the goal of the SIMPLE Team?
- Need to Know: An Introduction to Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sediment in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Learn More
What is the goal of the SIMPLE Team?

SIMPLE stands for Science to Inform Management Priorities, from Loads to Endpoints.
The SIMPLE team is a group of USGS researchers who are working to provide scientific insights that can help inform water-quality management activities in the Chesapeake. The goal of the SIMPLE team is to identify, address, and share scientific information with Chesapeake stakeholders to inform nutrient and sediment management activities. The team meets this goal by:
- Meeting with stakeholders to identify their priority needs.
- Working with the research community to address priority stakeholder questions
- Sharing scientific insights with stakeholders to help inform water-quality management activities.
The Chesapeake Bay is a large and complex ecosystem. The SIMPLE team works to connect managers with research experts, decision-making tools, and high-quality data.

Need to Know: An Introduction to Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sediment in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment are essential components of healthy aquatic ecosystems. However, excessive amounts of sediment or nutrients can cause negative effects on human health, aquatic life, and ecological conditions. Human activities have contributed to excess amounts of nutrients and sediment in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Therefore, restoration of the Chesapeake Bay relies on reducing nutrients and sediment in watershed rivers and streams that flow into the Bay.
Nutrient Pollution
Nutrient pollution is caused when excess nutrients in the form of nitrogen and phosphorus degrade aquatic ecosystems. Excess nutrients can produce large amounts of algae in a process called eutrophication. Algae can decrease recreational opportunities, impair drinking water, harm aquatic life, and, in some cases, release harmful toxins that are hazardous to human health.

Nitrogen from the air (atmospheric deposition) and phosphorus from the soil (mineral weathering) contribute natural amounts of nutrients to rivers and streams. However, additional nutrients from human activities often exceed natural inputs. In agricultural watersheds, nutrients from fertilizer and manure can seep into the groundwater or be washed overland into local streams. In urban watersheds, nutrients from fertilizer, wastewater, and pet waste can also reach nearby streams. Emissions from vehicles and power plants increase the amount of nitrogen in the air. Nutrients from these nonpoint sources may be stored in the landscape or undergo numerous biogeochemical processes before ever reaching the nearest stream, while point source discharges from wastewater treatment facilities in densely populated areas reach streams directly. Many factors, such as land use, geologic setting, and climatic conditions, affect the movement of nutrients from the landscape to the streams and rivers in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

A Century of Change
Watch the below video for a long-term perspective (1950-2050) on the historical, present, and future drivers of nitrogen in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Read this USGS report for more information.
Suspended Sediment
Suspended sediments are small particles of sand, silt, and clay that are picked up by moving water and become suspended in the water column. Sediment naturally weathers from the landscape into streams, but human activities can increase the amount of sediment that reaches streams. Larger amounts of sediment are typically in agricultural or urban streams than forested streams. Sediment can reach streams after running off the landscape or eroding from streambanks. Once in streams, sediment can be redeposited in the floodplain, stay the streambed, or be delivered further downstream. Streamflow can strongly affect the amount of suspended sediment in streams, with more sediment moved during storm events when streamflow is high. Legacy sediment from historical human activities also affects the amount of sediment in streams.
Sediment can carry nutrients and other pollutants to streams and cause increased stream turbidity, which is a measure of water clarity. Higher amounts of sediment and turbidity reduce light penetration, which can limit recreational opportunities, harm aquatic life, and increase water treatment costs.

Learn More
Now that you know the basics, explore this website and get in touch with the SIMPLE team to learn more about ongoing science to inform management priorities.
Learn more about the SIMPLE Priority Reserach Questions
Read some recent publications
See who the simple team works with
Contact the SIMPLE Team
Learn more about the science the USGS is carrying out which supports Chesapeake Bay management priorities.
New insights for reducing nutrient and sediment loads in agricultural watersheds prioritized for management activities
Monitoring the Effectiveness of Conservation Practices in Small Agricultural Watersheds
Summarizing Science to Inform Management in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Summarizing Scientific Findings for Common Stakeholder Questions to Inform Nutrient and Sediment Management Activities in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed

Narrated presentation that provides a unique synthesis of the story of nutrient water quality in the Susquehanna watershed.
Narrated presentation that provides a unique synthesis of the story of nutrient water quality in the Susquehanna watershed.
Narrated presentation that provides a unique, long-term perspective (1950-2050) of the major drivers of nitrogen change up to the present, and forecasts how they may affect nitrogen into the future for the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Information is based off of U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1486.
Narrated presentation that provides a unique, long-term perspective (1950-2050) of the major drivers of nitrogen change up to the present, and forecasts how they may affect nitrogen into the future for the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Information is based off of U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1486.
This page contains a selected list of publications about water-quality conditions and management implications in the Chesapeake. For a complete list of USGS Chesapeake Bay publications, click the green button below.
Fact Sheets and Circulars
Not sure where to start? Check out our easy-to-understand fact sheets and circulars to get an overview of conditions in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed:
- Coming Soon! Fact Sheet - Using Research to Guide Conservation Practices on Loc…
- Fact Sheet - Tracking Status and Trends of Key Stream Health Indicators
- Fact Sheet - Nutrient Trends and Drivers in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Fact Sheet –USGS Chesapeake Science Strategy 2021 - 2025
- Circular - Nitrogen in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed—A Century of Change
- Circular – Understanding Nutrients & Management Implications: The Eastern Shore
Scientific Investigations Reports
USGS Scientific Investigations Reports are publications that share significant data and interpretations of lasting scientific interest.
- Evaluating Water-Quality Drivers in Suburban and Urban Streams
- Spatial Models of Streamflow, Nutrients, and Sediment in the Northeast US
- Drinking Water Standards in Selected Pennsylvania Domestic Wells
- Manure and Fertilizer Inputs to Land in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Patterns of Best Management Practices in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Stream Chemistry in Chesapeake Bay Showcase Watersheds
- Analysis of Nitrate in a Coastal Plain Agricultural Watershed: Bucks Branch
Journal Articles
Journal articles provide a concise summary of important scientific findings.
- Progress in Reducing Nutrient and Sediment Loads to Chesapeake Bay
- Estimated Nitrogen Reductions in Streams with Conservation Practices
- Effect of Load Reductions on Nutrient Improvement in the Chesapeake Bay
- A History of Atmospheric Nitrogen in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- A Synthesis of Sediment Dynamics in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Factors Driving Nutrient Trends in Streams of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
- Effects of Land Use on Nutrient Concentrations in Pennsylvania Streams
The SIMPLE team works with many different stakeholders to make sure that our science addresses the highest priority needs across the Chesapeake Bay community. Some of the partners we’re working with are listed below. Don’t see your agency represented? We’d love to hear from you!