The Chesapeake Bay Watershed

What is a watershed?

A watershed is an area of land that drains into a particular river, lake or other body of water. Watersheds are sometimes called “basins” or “drainage basins.”

We all live in a watershed. Some watersheds, like that of a stream or creek, are small. Others, like the Chesapeake Bay watershed, are large.

We asked people in Alexandria, Virginia, to share their definition of a watershed. Find out what they said in the video below.

Chesapeake Unscripted: What is a Watershed? (Alexandria, VA) from Chesapeake Bay Program on Vimeo.

What is the Chesapeake Bay watershed?

The Chesapeake Bay watershed spans more than 64,000 square miles. It encompasses parts of six states—Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia—and the entire District of Columbia. Almost 18 million people live in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

The Chesapeake Bay’s land-to-water ratio is 14:1: the largest of any coastal water body in the world. This is why our actions on land have such a big impact on the Bay’s health.

What are the major rivers in the Chesapeake Bay watershed?

The Susquehanna, Potomac, Rappahannock, York and James rivers are the five largest rivers in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

Altogether, more than 100,000 streams, creeks and rivers (also called “tributaries”) thread through this watershed. Each watershed resident lives within a few miles of one of these local waterways, which act like pipelines that connect our communities to the Bay.

Each of the streams, creeks and rivers in the Bay watershed has its own watershed. These are sometimes called “sub-watersheds,” “small watersheds” or “local watersheds.”

What watershed do I live in?

Enter your zip code into the Surf Your Watershed widget below to learn about the watershed(s) you live in!