The Chesapeake Bay Watershed and Tourism on the Eastern Shore of Maryland
Angela Cotton
Chesapeake College
The Eastern Shore of Maryland is one of the most beautiful places, not only on the East Coast, but in the United States. Given this fact, which most of the locals are painfully aware of, it only makes that the Eastern Shore receives thousands of visitors throughout the year every year. One must wonder however, what exactly it is that brings all of these people to The Shore? First of all, it is a beautiful place to visit; between the views of the water, the wildlife, the historic towns, and the history scattered across each of the unique towns. This makes the Eastern Shore a prime location for low key vacations, as well as destination weddings. Another equally predominant factor to the amount of tourists which come to The Shore is the “local grub.” Everyone who visits The Shore wants to eat Maryland Blue Crabs, oysters, and rockfish. So, how is it that the Chesapeake Bay’s watershed directly impacts the number of tourists who visit The Shore in a …show more content…
There have been attempts for decades to clean up the Bay, but any expert would eagerly tell you that there is more to it than that. In order to keep the Chesapeake Bay healthy, you have to start with eliminating pollution in the entire watershed. If we are to rebuild the population of Maryland Blue Crabs, oysters and rockfish, we have to start small. The numbers that we have lost over the past thirty years are outstanding. Since the 1980s the oyster population alone has decreased by 70%. The sewage lines that dump into the watershed, the fertilizer and other agricultural run-off are the biggest issues causing the decline in the Bay’s health, and subsequently the tourism on the Eastern Shore that depends so heavily on the watershed (Woodward, December