ANNAPOLIS, Md. (Dec. 22, 2008)—The Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) today unveiled the first on-line nitrogen calculator, designed to educate watershed residents about their contribution to the nitrogen pollution damaging local rivers, streams, and the Chesapeake Bay. Much like carbon calculators, this new tool allows people to calculate how much nitrogen pollution they generate annually due to variables including their home size, electricity use, and what kind of car they drive.
“We hope this new tool will encourage people to think about the choices they make and take actions that will reduce nitrogen pollution across the watershed,” said CBF Senior Scientist Dr. Beth McGee. “The calculator allows you to see what difference you can make by reducing fertilizer application or changing the car you drive, and provides tips on things you can do to reduce nitrogen pollution.”
The calculator also allows you to see how your nitrogen footprint compares to the average, and how much we need to reduce our footprint to restore the Chesapeake Bay.
The nitrogen calculator can be found at http://www.cbf.org/yourbayfootprint/ . A link on that site explains how the calculations are made.
In the future, the calculator will be linked to the Chesapeake Fund, a partnership including CBF, Forest Trends and World Resources Institute. The fund will allow individuals and businesses to offset their nitrogen footprint by purchasing nitrogen credits. The Chesapeake Fund will use the proceeds to pay for pollution reduction in targeted areas within the watershed.