This is Chapter 2 of the Climate Action Plan, Governor Martin O'Malley's appointed Maryland Commission on Climate Change report on the impacts and recommended actions to protect Maryland's property and people from the effects of climate change.

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Coastal lagoon ecosystems across the Delmarva Peninsula are rapidly evolving due to changing land use patterns and shifts towards intensive agriculture, particularly poultry production, and intensive rural-resi­dential development. These changes in the coastal lagoon seascape are especially evident in the northern Coastal Bays watershed of St. Martin River.

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This newsletter introduces the first Patuxent River ecosystem health report card. This report card provides grades for three regions within the Patuxent River estuary (i.e., the tidal portion of the river). The report card grades are based on the progress of six indicators towards ecological targets. The report card shows that the Patuxent River estuary is mostly in poor condition and that substantially more effort is needed to see measurable improvements.

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This newsletter introduces the first Chester River ecosystem health report card. This report card summarizes the 2007 water quality of two major parts of the Chester River ecosystem: the estuary (tidal regions) and the creeks (non-tidal) flowing into the estuary. Creek water quality is based on data collected by the Chester River Association and their Chester Tester volunteers. Health of the estuarine regions is based on data collected by the Chesapeake Bay Program partners.

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The report card aims to inform citizens on the progress Chesapeake Bay is making toward becoming a healthy ecosystem. This year's report card shows that the health of the Bay improved slightly in 2007 when compared to 2006. While the overall health of the Bay and most regions of the Bay improved, the health of some regions of the Bay declined.

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This report card provides a transparent, timely, and geographically detailed annual assessment of 2007 Chesapeake Bay habitat health. This is the second 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. Habitat health is defined as progress of the six indicators towards established scientifically derived ecological thresholds or goals.

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Intensive sampling of the Maryland Coastal Bays in May and July of 2007 served to further assess spatial patterns in nutrients, responses of biological indicators, seasons, land use, and nutrient cycling. Trends indicated degraded water quality, high tubidity, increasing total nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations, high natural isotope abundance (δ15N), and low dissolved oxygen. The abundance of crop agriculture and development of the St.

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The Marine Monitoring Program is a long-term water quality and ecosystem heath monitoring program carried out in the inshore region of the Great Barrier Reef Lagoon. The program is an integral component of the Reef Water Quality Protection Plan, that will help to assess the long-term effectiveness of Reef Plan in reversing decline in the quality of water entering the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.

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The Pacific Island Network (PACN) of the National Park Service (NPS) Inventory and Monitoring program is currently in the process of implementing vital signs monitoring within 11 PACN parks. As a basis to monitoring, effective communication is essential.

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The Pacific Island Network (PACN) of the National Park Service (NPS) Inventory and Monitoring program is currently in the process of implementing vital signs monitoring within 11 PACN parks. As a basis to monitoring, effective communication is essential.

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