Since 1983, the states of MD, PA, and VA.; D. C.; the Chesapeake Bay Comm.; and the EPA have partnered to protect and restore the deteriorated Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. The partners established the Chesapeake Bay Program to manage and coordinate a variety of restoration activities and in their most recent agreement, ¿Chesapeake 2000,¿ they established 102 commitments for the Chesapeake Bay to be achieved by 2010. In Oct. 2005, a report was issued which reviewed the mgmt., coordination, and reporting mechanisms used by the Bay Program, and recommended that the Bay Program take 6 actions. This report assesses the progress that the Bay Program has made in implementing these recommendations. Illus.

The Chesapeake Bay Program was created in 1983 when Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, D.C., the Chesapeake Bay Comm., and the EPA agreed to establish a partnership to restore the Bay. The partnership¿s most recent agreement, ¿Chesapeake 2000,¿ sets out 4 broad goals to guide the restoration effort through 2010. This testimony summarizes the findings of an Oct. 2005 report on: (1) the extent to which measures for assessing restoration progress had been established; (2) the extent to which program reports clearly and accurately described the Bay¿s health; (3) how much funding was provided for the effort for FY 1995 to 2004; and (4) how effectively the effort was being coordinated and managed. Charts and tables.

The EPA¿s mission is to protect human health and the environment by implementing and enforcing environmental laws intended to improve the quality of the nation¿s air and water and to protect its land. EPA's policies and programs affect virtually all segments of the economy, society, and gov¿t. This report identifies challenges at EPA that hinder its ability to implement its programs effectively, including: (1) improving agencywide mgmt.; (2) transforming EPA's processes for assessing and controlling toxic chemicals; (3) improving implementation of the Clean Air Act; (4) reducing pollution in the nation's waters, (5) speeding the pace of cleanup at Superfund and other hazardous waste sites; and (6) addressing emerging climate change issues. Illus.

The EPA's mission is to protect human health and the environment by implementing and enforcing the laws intended to improve the quality of the nation's air, water, and lands. EPA's policies and programs affect virtually all segments of the economy, society, and government. Auditors have identified several significant and persistent challenges across a range of EPA programs and activities and has proposed corrective actions to enable the agency to more effectively accomplish its mission. Based on this work, this testimony highlights some of the major management challenges facing EPA today, the agency's efforts to address them, and the work that remains to be done. Includes recommendations. Illustrations. This is a print on demand report.

Cooperative interstate relations are essential for the maintenance of the economic union and the political union established by a confederacy or a federacy. This suggests that interstate relations would be featured prominently in the literature of the U.S. federal system, yet relatively few scholars have studied horizontal state relations. This volume provides detailed information and an analysis of interstate relations, and advances recommendations to improve the economic and political union. The ultimate goal is to stimulate scholarly research on important yet neglected interstate issues.

Nonnative Oysters in the Chesapeake Bay discusses the proposed plan to offset the dramatic decline in the bay's native oysters by introducing disease-resistant reproductive Suminoe oysters from Asia. It suggests this move should be delayed until more is known about the environmental risks, even though carefully regulated cultivation of sterile Asian oysters in contained areas could help the local industry and researchers. It is also noted that even though these oysters eat the excess algae caused by pollution, it could take decades before there are enough of them to improve water quality.

Recent Actions by the Chesapeake Bay Program Are Positive Steps Toward More Effectively Guiding the Restoration Effort, but Additional Steps Are Needed