Watershed report cards are powerful tools to describe ecosystem status, increase public awareness, and inform and influence decision makers to improve the health of a watershed. This is the first Upper Rio Grande Report Card. It is the collective effort of dozens of stakeholders throughout the Upper Rio Grande watershed. Indicators in the report card were selected to assess the health of four different values in the watershed:

This document describes the methods and development process for the Upper Rio Grande Basin Report Card.

Coastal Bays health is defined as the progress of four water quality indicators (nitrogen, phosphorus, chlorophyll a, dissolved oxygen) and two biotic indicators (seagrass, hard clam) toward scientifically derived ecological thresholds or goals. The Coastal Bays had an overall score of C+, a slight improvement from the previous year. Improved total phosphorus scores contributed to the slightly higher overall health of the bays.

Reporting on the State of the Maryland Coastal Bays is an opportunity to step back and reflect on the status and trends of key environmental features in this iconic region. The theme of this State of the Coastal Bays is building ecological resilience in the region. This focus on resilience is due to the convergence of several factors:

Every five years, The Maryland Coastal Bays Program publishes its State of the Bays Report, accompanied by the annual Maryland Coastal Bays Report Card. The theme of the 2022 State of the Coastal Bays is building ecological resilience in the region. This focus on resilience is due to the convergence of several factors:

Published in 2022, the 2021 Severn River Report Card summarizes data collected in the summer of 2021. It was a troubling year for water quality in the Severn River in 2021. The overall grade for the Severn River dropped to a D+ in 2021, largely due to a decline in underwater grasses. This decline offset improvements seen in dissolved oxygen.

In the annual IAN Report Card, IAN staff reflect on accomplishments from 2021. The self-assessment is based on indicators in three categories: social impacts, ecological outcomes, and partner engagement. Overall, IAN received an overall grade of C+ (79%), a moderate score nearly in the good range.

This Guide is developed to supplement the Practitioner’s Guide to Developing River Basin Report Cards, which was developed in partner with World Wildlife Fund (WWF) as part of the Healthy Rivers for All initiative. It is intended for those developing indicators that can help understand the health of a basin report card or those who are developing a basin report card.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Coral Reef Conservation Program supports the National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) in the United States Pacific, Atlantic, Caribbean, and Gulf of Mexico.

The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Integration and Application Network has partnered with Council Fire, LLC, the Clinton River Watershed Council, Friends of the Detroit River, Huron River Watershed Council, River Raisin Watershed Council, and Friends of the Rouge to create socio-environmental report cards for five rivers in southeast Michigan. An overall report card that integrates the results into an assessment of the southeast Michigan region will also be produced.