Evaluating water-quality trends in agricultural watersheds prioritized for management-practice implementation.

ABSTRACT: Many agricultural watersheds rely on the voluntary use of management practices (MPs) to reduce nonpoint source nutrient and sediment loads; however, the water-quality effects of MPs are uncertain. We interpreted water-quality responses from as early as 1985 through 2020 in three agricultural Chesapeake Bay watersheds that were prioritized for MP implementation, namely, the Smith Creek (Virginia), Upper Chester River (Maryland), and Conewago Creek (Pennsylvania) watersheds. We synthesized patterns in MPs, climate, land use, and nutrient inputs to better understand factors affecting nutrient and sediment loads. Relations between MPs and expected water-quality improvements were not consistently identifiable. The number of MPs increased in all watersheds since the early 2010s, but most monitor

SUBMITTER: Webber J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11694830 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature