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The Choptank River Basin Larger waterbodies include the Choptank, Little Choptank, and Tred Avon Rivers and Broad, Harris, and Tuckahoe Creeks. The Choptank River basin lies entirely within the Atlantic Coastal Plain. |
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The Choptank River, along with all tributary basins in the Chesapeake, contribute to and are impacted by nutrient pollution. Nutrient pollution can be divided into two major categories – point sources (pollution that comes from a single, definable location, such as a wastewater treatment plant or industrial discharge) and non-point sources, (pollution that cannot be attributed to a clearly identifiable, specific physical location, such as runoff from land and atmospheric deposition). Runoff from different land uses, point sources and atmospheric deposition are the major sources of nutrients within the bay watershed. In the Choptank watershed, agriculture is the primary land use and the leading source of nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment. The remaining contributions come from a combination of non-point and point sources. In this basin, as in the rest of the state, forest and wetlands are a land use that releases few nutrients to rivers and the Bay. Baywide, approximately 33% of nitrogen loads come from atmospheric sources, however, that varies from basin to basin and is included in land based loads. Download the complete Basin Overview to learn more about the Choptank River Basin. See the latest Choptank River water quality data (charts for water temperature, salinity, water clarity and dissolved oxygen), or see water quality for other Bay tributaries. For water quality status and long-term trends, see our status and trends maps. Also, please check out the Basin Summary for the Choptank River Tributary Basin. |
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The basin supports over 80 species of fish in its freshwater streams and brackish waters, including striped bass, largemouth bass, and flounder. The lower portion of the watershed is an important concentration area for waterfowl.