Phase III WIPs

Overview - Phase I WIPs - Phase II WIPs - Phase III WIPs - Jurisdiction Contacts

Phase III WIP Updates

2022 Pennsylvania Phase III WIP Amendment

EPA received an amended Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) from Pennsylvania to meet the 2025 nitrogen target. Click on the link below to view the Phase III WIP:

 View Pennsylvania’s amended Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan on its Department of Environmental Protection website 

Conowingo Watershed Implementation Plan (CWIP)

The Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) partnership’s Principals’ Staff Committee (PSC) agreed to develop a separate and collaborative CWIP that would outline the programmatic and numeric commitments that could be taken to reduce the adverse water quality impacts to the Chesapeake Bay resulting from Conowingo Dam infill, as well as a timeline at which those reductions could be achieved. View the CWIP or learn more about the Steering Committee activities.

2021 New York Phase III WIP Amendment

EPA received an amended Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) from New York  to meet the 2025 nitrogen target. Click on the link below to view the amended Phase III WIP:
View New York’s amended Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan on its Department of Environmental Conservation website

2019 Phase III WIP Submissions

EPA received final Phase III Watershed Implementation Plans (WIPs) from the jurisdictions on August 23, 2019. Click on the links below to view the final Phase III WIPs for each jurisdiction:

• View Delaware's Final Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan on its Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control website
• View District of Columbia's Final Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan on its Department of Energy and Environment website
• View Maryland's Final Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan on its Department of the Environment website
• View New York's Final Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan on its Department of Environmental Conservation website
• View Pennsylvania's Final Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan on its Department of Environmental Protection website 
• View Virginia's Final Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan on its Department of Environmental Quality website

• View West Virginia's Final Phase III Watershed Implementation Plan on its Chesapeake Bay website

The Chesapeake Bay TMDL called for a midpoint assessment to review progress toward meeting the nutrient and sediment pollutant load reductions necessary for Bay restoration. EPA completed this Midpoint Assessment of the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (PDF)(4 pp, 4 K, About PDF) in 2018.  The jurisdictions committed to develop Phase III WIPs following this midpoint assessment.  The Phase III WIPs will provide information on actions the jurisdictions intend to implement through 2025 to meet the Bay TMDL restoration goals.

On July 9, 2018, the Chesapeake Bay Program partnership’s Principals’ Staff Committee approved the final Phase III planning targets (PDF) (1 pp, 196 K, About PDF) which represent the nitrogen and phosphorus pollution imits necessary to meet applicable water quality standards in the Chesapeake Bay. The Phase III WIPs will describe the actions the jurisdictions will take to have all practices on the ground by 2025 to achieve their respective Phase III planning targets.

On January 24, 2020, the Chesapeake Bay Program partnership’s Principals’ Staff Committee approved the final Phase III planning targets for sediment which represent the pollution limits necessary to meet applicable water quality standards in the Chesapeake Bay.  Additional information on these sediment targets can be found on the Chesapeake Bay Program partnership’s  Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) Sediment Planning Targetsdocument.

EPA issued these two Phase III WIP expectations documents: 

• June 20, 2018 - EPA’s Expectations for the Phase III Watershed Implementation Plans (PDF)(18 pp, 318 K, About PDF)

• August 16, 2018 - EPA's Expectations for Federal Lands and Facilities in Supporting the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Jurisdictions' Phase III Watershed Implementation Plans (PDF)(7 pp, 80 K, About PDF)