Agriculture Workgroup

Meetings

About

The charge of the Agriculture Workgroup is to provide expertise and leadership on development and implementation of policies, programs and research to reduce pollutant loads delivered from agricultural lands and animal operations to upstream waters and the Chesapeake Bay. The workgroup reports to the Water Quality Goal Implementation Team. Functions include:

• Provide a forum for discussion, exchange of information and evaluation between federal, state and local agencies, conservation districts, universities, agri-business and the corporate sector on sustainable and/or cost-effective agricultural production systems that benefit water and air quality.
• Provide recommendations on the prioritization of federal and state technical and financial resources on specific practices in priority watersheds.
• Provide technical expertise and leadership to support the development and implementation of agricultural elements within the Chesapeake Bay TMDL, Watershed Implementation Plans, two-year milestones, and tracking and reporting mechanisms that support an adaptive management approach towards Bay restoration.
• Coordinate with WQGIT Watershed Technical Workgroup to identify, define, quantify and incorporate pollutant reduction and conservation practices on agricultural lands and animal operations into the Chesapeake Bay Program decision support system. Provide data and support for the Water Quality Goal Implementation Team and Technical and Support Services.

Governance Protocols

The AgWG Governance Protocols revised on November 7, 2024, articulate the AgWG decision-making process and selection processes and term lengths for members and leadership. 

Membership

The AgWG membership includes both Signatory and At-Large members, with up to 21 members possible. AgWG membership includes the following: 

Signatory Members from each Chesapeake Bay Program Partnership Agreement
signatory [up to 9 signatory members (one each) with an alternate identified]

• Chesapeake Bay Commission (CBC)
• Delaware
• District of Columbia
• Maryland
• New York
• Pennsylvania
• Virginia
• West Virginia
• US EPA

At-large Member Categories** [up to 12 members (one or more each) with option to
identify alternates]

• Academic (e.g. regional colleges and land grant institutions)
• Agri-Business and Industry (e.g. regional commodity, fruits and nuts, livestock
  and poultry, and nursery representatives or associations)
• Conservation Districts (e.g. regional conservation districts or associations)
• Conservation/Environmental NGO's (e.g. regional agricultural and conservation
  NGO’s)
• USDA (e.g. ARS, NRCS) 

More information on the current membership can be found in the AgWG At-Large and Signatory Membership list, Updated August 2025. 

Meeting Resources

The AgWG uses the following resources to track the Agriculture Workgroup's past and present actions and decisions throughout the development of the Phase 6 and Phase 7 models: 

• Agriculture Workgroup Actions and Decisions 2010-2025
• Agriculture Workgroup and Agricultural Modeling Subcommittee Decisions on the Phase 6 Model

In July 2025, the AgWG endorsed a prioritization document that will be used to identify priority topics for the workgroup through the end of 2026 and provide a framework for agenda building and project development. 

Projects

Publications