-
Newport News becomes a shipyard, and the population spreads, and grows very rapidly.
-
There was a lot of coal burning, and mining near the Potomac River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay.
-
Scientists, farmers, and fisherman begin talking about pollutants on the bottom of the Bay, such as, chemicals, pollution, trash, and waste.
-
About 70% of the east coasts farmland, and woods were being developed into cities, and towns.
-
The oyster population decreased very quickly, which affected the health of the Chesapeake Bay. The state began to set a limit and they started controlling the oyster industry.
-
Scientists begin doing research on the health of the Bay, and how humans have had an extreme impact on the Bay.
-
Roads all up and down the east coast are being paved and improved to fit cars and trucks.
-
Waste and sewage has started being dumped into the Bay, and people are starting to notice a lot of algae. The health of the Bay is clearly getting worse. The algae causes problems for the SAV and oysters, their population is decreasing at a steady pace.
-
Baltimore installed filters in their sewage systems to help clean the Chesapeake Bay.
-
Baltimore becomes the last city in America to install septic lines.
-
WW1 begins and there is a battle on Mallow's Bay, which is on the Potomac River. All the pollution flows directly into the Chesapeake Bay.
-
The blue crab population is experiencing even more of a decrease. The crabbers are only catching half the amount they were 10 years ago.
-
The Great Depression hits the U.S. The country is in its worst state it has ever been in, many people are unemployed and homeless.
-
In 1933, the first multi-state conference is held. Representatives from all over the east coast of America meet to discuss the Bay's health.
-
Many scientists begin researching the Bay, and they find that there are many healthy underwater grasses and oyster reefs in the Chesapeake Bay. They find these images by using birds-eye view images.
-
Chemical fertilizers become a widely used fertilizer throughout the east coast. It replaced the original fertilizer farmers used, manure and marl.
-
Many of the east coast states have now created Water Pollution Control Agencies to record and reduce the pollution in the Bay.
-
A bridge is finished in Maryland. It is called the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, it connects the eastern and western shores of Maryland.
-
A new disease called MSX hits the east coast and the Chesapeake Bay. It breaks down oysters from the inside, by deteriorating the oyster's tissue inside.
-
There is a new policy called the Clean Air Act. It was created to lower the air pollution in the Chesapeake Bay.
-
In 1967, the Chesapeake Bay Foundation was formed to save the bay's rivers, streams, and creaks.
-
There is a new tunnel connecting the eastern shore to Virginia Beach. It travels underneath the Bay's floor.
-
A new toxic chemical named kepone is found in the James River. The chemical is harmful to many of the Bay's creatures, including, fish, crabs, and many more.
-
Oysters are taking even more of a hit from the newest disease called Dermo. Dermo is a parasite that kills oysters usually in their second stage of life, by getting into the oyster's tissue and slowly breaking it down.
-
The second Chesapeake Bay Agreement is signed to help reduce nitrogen and phosphorus in the bay by at least 45%.
-
Marland's oyster harvest is only four percent (4%) of what it was 100 years earlier. This is an all-time low.
-
Scientists have proven the water quality has gotten much better from ten years earlier. There isn't as much nitrogen or phosphorus, and there is much more oxygen in the water for the fish and crabs to breathe. Aerial photos have also shown much more SAV in different parts of the Bay.
-
Research shows the SAV and underwater grass numbers have risen by about 10,000 acres since the year 2000
-
In 2002, Maryland only caught 20.2 million pounds of blue crabs, their lowest catch ever.
-
The invasive zebra mussel was found for the first time in Maryland, originally originating from Ukraine.
-
A judge states that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is allowed to set pollution limits on all states on the east coast.
-
In 2018, Virginia got record rainfall which washed more pollution into the Bay than usual. The Bay's health fell to a grade of d+, it fell from c-.
