The FY22 Harbor Heartbeat report found that bacteria scores continue to improve across the Baltimore Harbor watershed indicating there is less sewage in the Harbor now than at any point in the program’s 11-year monitoring history. Unlike the improving bacteria scores, ecosystem health scores have not changed over the last ten years in either Baltimore’s streams or Harbor.

This is likely due to a lack of prioritization of substantial green infrastructure projects that would reduce polluted storm water runoff. In addition to the report card, the Waterfront Partnership monitors five Inner Harbor sites, weekly from April 1st through October 1st each year. All bacteria samples are delivered to a private lab for analysis while select samples are tested by the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES) using DNA markers. Only with continued and increased testing can we better understand the trends and work toward a daily notification system that informs the public about current water conditions.