ABSTRACT
Nonpoint sources of pollution such as runoff from agricultural and urban activities are major factors in declining water quality. This chapter describes the interaction between land use decisions and water quality in the Chesapeake Bay. The authors examine the creation of new land use regulations designed to protect the Bay. Economic concepts applied and refined in this case include externalities, common property, transactions costs, irreversibilities, and free rider situations. Other concepts related to the issue include the role of symbols and myths, especially as used by interest groups, and preservation versus management values. Economic and political factors are used to explain how interest groups effect and are affected by a natural resource policy process.
