Citizen and Community Action

The Chesapeake Bay Program is involved with multiple partners that provide leadership education and technical assistance to businesses, developers, local governments, private land owners and other stakeholder groups in the Bay watershed. Training these stakeholder groups promotes Bay Program restoration commitments such as watershed planning, community engagement and sound land use.

The Bay Program's communications office also provides technical assistance with education, communications and outreach related to water quality restoration, habitat restoration and fisheries management on an as-needed basis.

Watershed Management

• Chesapeake NEMO (Network for Education of Municipal Officials), a program that helps Bay watershed communities protect natural areas, preserve water quality and foster well-planned growth.
• Forestry for the Bay, a program that educates small forest land owners about forest management options that benefit the Bay.
• Businesses for the Bay, a pollution prevention program for businesses, industries, government facilities and other Bay watershed organizations to reduce chemical contaminants and other wastes to the Bay and its tributaries.
• Builders for the Bay, a program that works to reduce environmental impacts from residential and commercial construction in the Bay watershed.
• Chesapeake Bay Small Watershed Grants, a program that provides grants to organizations and local governments working on a local level to protect and improve sub-watersheds within the Chesapeake watershed. Small Watershed Grants are distributed by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

Citizen Stewardship

One important way citizens contribute to Bay restoration is through individual action: alone, with friends and families or as part of a community group. Each one of us must take part in the Bay restoration effort—whether by changing daily habits or actively participating in cleanups—for it to be successful.

Chesapeake Bay Gateways foster Chesapeake stewardship by helping people appreciate the part they play in the Bay's survival. Many Gateways also have active volunteer programs with opportunities for people to lend a hand with habitat restoration, water quality monitoring, educational programming and more.