The Critical Area Act of 1984 was passed to protect the Chesapeake Watershed by preserving the land closest to the bay and its tributaries. The law established the Critical Area Commission, which is responsible for developing and implementing statewide regulations that preserve water quality, protect the flora and fauna of the bay and guide land use policies for local governments within what is called the Critical Area of the watershed.
The Commission defines this Critical Area as “all land within 1,000 feet of the Mean High Water Line of tidal waters or the landward edge of tidal wetlands and all waters of and lands under the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.”
The Commission has revised the standards governing buffers in the critical area. As defined by Title 27 of the Critical Area Commission for the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays, a buffer “…means a naturally vegetated area or vegetated area, established or managed to protect aquatic, wetland, shoreline, and terrestrial environments from man-made disturbances.”
The Commission’s new regulations will go into effect on Monday, March 8, 2010. The revisions to Title 27 maintain the original definition of a buffer, but set revised standards of compliance for buffer establishment, planting and mitigation, and management plans. Basically, they have adjusted the standards for the size of a buffer, what type of vegetation and how much must be planted on a buffer zone and how individuals applying for permits will manage and preserve the established buffer.
Bay on the Brink is a multimedia reporting project examining the fate of the Chesapeake Bay. It is produced by fellows at the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism as part of News21, a consortium of journalism schools. This is the fellows' blog. The full project site is here: http://chesapeake.news21.com
