This is one of several products of a study of long-term trends in water quality and fishery resources in three important U.S. estuaries: 1) Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, 2) the Albemarle-Pamlico Sound system in North Carolina, and 3) Galveston Bay, Texas. The project had four specific objectives: 1) to document long-term trends in water quality and, where possible, identify causes, consequences and significance, 2) to assess whether problems are similar or unique to each estuary, 3) to assess whether progress is being made in improving conditions in water quality and fishery resources and whether there are examples of success that would be useful for estuarine managers and researchers elsewhere, and 4) to glean examples of the useful integration of research and policy.