Back River (Maryland)
Introduction '''Back River''' is a tidal estuary in Baltimore County, Maryland, located about  east of the city of Baltimore. The estuary extends from Essex, Maryland, southeast for about  to the Chesapeake Bay. The watershed area is  and includes Essex Skypark Airport and the Back River Wastewater Treatment Plant. The river is shared between Essex, MD, Dundalk, MD, and Edgemere, MD
Water quality Fishing on the Back River, near the sewage treatment plant, in 1973Back River is in a highly urbanized area and is subject to extensive urban runoff and other forms of water pollution. The Maryland Department of the Environment has listed water quality impairments in the mainstem river for chlordane (a pesticide), and nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus). The Herring Run tributary is listed as impaired due to high levels of bacteria. The Baltimore County Department of Environmental Protection and Resource Management (DEPRM) has classified Bread and Cheese Creek as having a “Very High Priority” for stormwater management actions, due to the large amount of trash and sediment found in it. The county recommends implementing a number of remedial activities to control urban runoff pollution, including "downspout disconnection, storm drain marking, buffer improvement, alley retrofit, street sweeping, tree planting and public education."
Tributaries The Back River watershed consists of  of streams in Baltimore County and Baltimore City. * Armistead Run* Biddison Run* Bread and Cheese Creek* Brien’s Run* Chinquapin Run* Deep Creek* Duck Creek* Herring Run* Moore’s Run* Northeast Creek* Redhouse Run* Stemmers Run* Tiffany Run
See also * List of rivers of Maryland
References * United States Geological Survey. Reston, VA.  "Back River." ''Geographic Names Information System (GNIS).'' Accessed 2009-08-28.
External links *  Back River Restoration Committee*  Clean Bread and Cheese Creek* Blue Water Baltimore, formed in 2010 from a merger of the Gwynns Falls, Jones Falls, Herring Run, and Baltimore Harbor Watershed Associations, and the Baltimore Harbor Waterkeeper