Climate change will affect Maryland in a variety of ways. More obvious impacts could include an increased risk for extreme events such as drought, storms, flooding, and forest fires; more heat-related stress; the spread of existing or new vector-born disease; and increased erosion and inundation of low-lying areas along the State’s shoreline and coast. Adaptation, together with mitigation, is necessary to address climate change.

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Maryland citizens are blessed with an abundant supply of water. However, many water systems are already stressed during droughts, and infrastructure damage and water contamination occurs during floods. Future population growth will combine with increasingly variable weather patterns to place more communities at risk of property damage, regulatory liabilities and uncertain access to drinking water.

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Risk management is critical in any restoration project. Risks include those associated with climate patterns, such as more intense storms, as well as those associated with land use change, site selection, and design. Addressing these risks in conjunction with ongoing restoration efforts will prepare communities for greater variability and may result in cost savings and reduced risk. Best Management Practices (BMPs) should be sited and designed with climate change impacts in mind.

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Maryland’s extensive aquatic ecosystems range from freshwater swamps and bogs to freshwater rivers and marshes to coastal bays and salt marshes. These ecosystems are influenced by precipitation, temperature, tropical storms, and human activity. Human development and pollution have degraded their natural resilience, leaving them more vulnerable to climate change and extreme events.

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This report card provides a transparent, timely, and geographically detailed assessment of Chesapeake Bay. In 2012, the methods for the report card have changed to include five water quality indicators and two biotic indicators. In 2012, the overall grade for Chesapeake Bay is a 47%, a C. This means the Bay is in moderate health. Fisheries indicators as well as trajectories of reporting region health are also presented. For further details, visit the Report Card website .

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This report card provides a transparent, timely, and geographically detailed assessment of Chesapeake Bay. The overall health of Chesapeake Bay, determined using water quality and biotic indicators, declined slightly in 2011. The overall grade of D+ was a decrease for the second year in a row, down from a C- in 2010. Only two reporting regions, the Patapsco and Back Rivers, and the Lower Western Shore (MD), had improved grades in 2011.

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This report card provides a transparent, timely, and geographically detailed assessment of 2010 Chesapeake Bay health. The overall health of Chesapeake Bay, assessed using water quality and biotic indicators, declined slightly in 2010. The overall grade decreased from a C in 2009 to C- in 2010. Only two reporting regions (James River and York River) had improved grades in 2010, three were unchanged, and nine declined.

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This report card provides a transparent, timely, and geographically detailed assessment of 2009 Chesapeake Bay habitat health. The overall health of Chesapeake Bay, assessed using water quality and biotic indicators, was the best it has been since 2002. The overall grade improved from C- in 2008 to C in 2009. Eight reporting regions had improved grades in 2009, four were unchanged, and two had slightly worse grades.

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This report card provides a transparent, timely, and geographically detailed annual assessment of 2008 Chesapeake Bay habitat health. This is the third year that the report card has been released. This report card rates 15 reporting regions of the Bay using six indicators that are combined into a single overarching index of habitat health. The overall health of Chesapeake Bay was poor in 2008, obtaining a grade of C-.

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This newsletter is the second annual Patuxent River ecosystem health report card. The report card provides grades for the three tidal regions of the Patuxent River estuary. The grades are based on the frequency that the river is able to meet six ecological targets. The results show the river is generally in poor condition despite a small improvement in the health in 2008 (compared to 2007).

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