(File Photo)

Source for Photo: FILE – Emissions rise from the smokestacks at the Jeffrey Energy Center coal power plant as the suns sets, near Emmett, Kan., Sept. 18, 2021. The Supreme Court’s conservative majority seemed skeptical Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024, as a government lawyer argued that the Environmental Protection Agency should be allowed to continue enforcing its anti-air-pollution “good neighbor” rule. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel, File)

(Pennsylvania) Despite some progress, Pennsylvania and other states in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed are unlikely to meet their 2025 pollution commitments to reduce nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment pollution. An assessment by the Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay Program reveals that more than two-thirds of the Bay and its tidal rivers did not meet clean-water standards between 2020 and 2022. Harry Campbell from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation notes that pollution levels vary based on land use, local economies and population, and stresses that a stronger workforce is essential for Pennsylvania to meet its goals. Campbell notes that Governor Josh Shapiro reaffirmed Pennsylvania’s commitment to bay restoration in June. The two-hundred and tweny million dollar Pennsylvania Clean Streams Fund addresses major river and stream impairments and includes a program to help farmers adopt sustainable practices. This year’s state budget also allocates an additional fifty million to the fund, ensuring ongoing support for programs like the farmer-focused cost-share initiative.