Enhanced Nutrient Removal

Executive Order 01.01.2002.24, issued in 2002, establishes a policy to ensure Maryland will achieve the nutrient reductions necessary to restore the Chesapeake Bay and fulfill Maryland's commitment to the Chesapeake 2000 Agreement.  

The policy calls for Enhanced Nutrient Removal (ENR) at wastewater treatment plants in Maryland. ENR establishes nutrient removal goals of 3 milligrams per liter (mg/l) total nitrogen and 0.3 mg/l total phosphorus in discharges from major wastewater treatment plants, where feasible. Implementation of the policy will reduce nitrogen in the Chesapeake Bay by an additional 7.5 million pounds per year and phosphorus by an additional 220,000 pounds per year from wastewater treatment plants in Maryland. 

This Executive Order ensures that wastewater treatment plants can continue to support growth and development while still reducing nutrient loading significantly to meet water quality goals for the Chesapeake Bay. ENR requires upgrade of BNR facilities with combination of all or some of the following: operation adjustment; biological process; biochemical process; chemical process, and/or physical process.   Implementing the Strategy is critical to the health of the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem and vital for the economic growth in Maryland.

Contact:  For more information, please contact Rajiv Chawla at (410) 537-3770.