The Chesapeake Bay has undergone a period of exceptional change during the 

 past decade (Paper 2, Pollution in Chesapeake Bay: A Case History and Assess- 

 ment). Some of this change was caused by the introduction of human pollutants 

 sewage, nutrients, heat, oil and chemical spills, and toxicants. The actual and 

 potential effects of these pollutants on the Bay are discussed. An evaluation of events 

 following the release of Kepone, a persistent chlorinated hydrocarbon, in the James 

 River is presented with documentation of effects on human health and aquatic 

 species. Although most of the Kepone originally released is buried by recent sedi- 

 mentation, much of the biota remains contaminated. 



The Chesapeake Bay Program, a research endeavor sponsored by the Environ- 

 mental Protection Agency, emphasizes toxic materials, submerged aquatic vege- 

 tation, overenrichment, and improved management of water quality. This study is 

 about three-fourths completed and involves about 60 principal investigators at 30 

 agencies and institutions. The Bay research program, as well as other recent studies, 

 regards the Chesapeake along with its tidal tributaries as a single entity with physical, 

 chemical, and biological continuity the total Bay is treated as an ecosystem. This 

 treatment was pointed out as an advance for the decade. An assessment of pollution 

 problems of the Bay indicates new and improved state laws, stronger management 

 involvement, and increased focus for more sophisticated research, all of which may 

 have positive effects. However, population growth continues with attendant loading 

 and introduction of exotic toxicants and other materials which continue to plague 

 the Bay. 



The New York Bight is an example of a coastal area where human influences are 

 functions of striking increases in population density and energy usages (Paper 3, 

 Pollution in the New York Bight: A Case History). In earlier times, solid wastes were 

 dumped on lower value lands to create new land; garbage and refuse were dumped in 

 the inner Bight, and sediment and sewage sludges were dumped nearby. The dis- 

 charge of waste in the Bight area is still a concern and has received much attention 

 during the past decade. Modifications of the Bight ecosystem are difficult to docu- 

 ment because of limited measurements and large variability in responses to natural 

 environmental fluctuations. Several environmental issues with attendant impacts 

 during the past 10 years are discussed and include bathing water quality, oil spills, 

 and dredged material. In addition, environmental crises (real or imaginary), such as 

 beach pollution by sewage sludge and bioaccumulation of dredged material, are 

 presented. Several limitations to statutes and regulations are discussed in relation to 

 pollution control and management of resources in the Bight. In general, much was 

 accomplished during the 1970s toward identifying and understanding the causes and 

 effects of marine pollution in the New York Bight. It is suggested that in the future, 

 effects of pollution in the Bight be evaluated at the ecosystem level and, if ecological 

 effects are deemed unacceptable, remedial action be taken without necessarily 

 attempting to blame or control any single chemical or type of waste. 



Domestic sewage contains nutrients that, when discharged into the coastal 

 environment, have potential for detrimental effects (Paper 4, Man's Impact on the 

 Coastal Environment: Nutrients in the Marine Environment). Even when sewage 

 receives secondary treatment to reduce biological oxygen demand before being dis- 

 charged, the treatment does not remove essential plant nutrients, primarily nitrogen 

 and phosphorus. Occurrence of these conservative elements in domestic sewage and 

 the role of sewage in coastal ecology are discussed. The Hudson Estuary is used as an 

 example of how nutrients introduced into a river or estuary might adversely affect 

 "downstream" coastal waters. Excessive turbidity limits stimulation of phytoplank- 

 ton photosynthesis in the Hudson Estuary, but nutrients from sewage discharges 

 into the estuary at least partially nourish photosynthesis over a wide area in the 

 New York Bight. The Hudson Estuary also was used to illustrate that the distribu- 

 tion of a conservative element can be predicted readily for steady-state conditions, 

 but details of distribution and mechanisms that control and produce observed distri- 

 butions are more difficult to understand. Difficulties encountered in making steady- 



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