The Chesapeake Bay Program is facilitating increased nutrient and sediment control strategies by creating a framework and toolkit for adaptive management. The Chesapeake Bay Program recognizes that integrating regional water quality needs into local land use decisions is key to restoring the Bay. The Chesapeake Bay Program has worked for 25 years to track progress toward abating nitrogen, phosphorus, and sediment pollution in the Bay. With the onset of a basin-wide TMDL and amidst criticism of overestimating progress in achieving decreased nutrient and sediment loads, the Chesapeake Bay Program, through a grant to the University of Maryland, is developing a free and on-line decision-support tool known as the Nutrient and Sediment Scenario Builder. This tool is designed to assist planners in meeting cap-loads associated with the TMDL. Since the Bay Program staff will also use this tool, the methods used for tracking progress will become more transparent. The tool is designed for rapid scenario development so users may understand the impacts of management practices and land use change, as well as develop more effective nitrogen and phosphorus management strategies. In essence, Scenario Builder allows local governments and watershed organizations to translate land use decisions such as zoning, permit approvals and BMP implementation into changes in pounds of nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment originating from a particular county or watershed. The underlying model to the Nutrient and Sediment Scenario Builder is process-based. The sources of nutrients include farm animals, chemical fertilizer, sewage sludge, septic and sewer systems. Users can estimate the impact of land use changes on nutrient and sediment loads by comparing scenarios. The implication of where and which best management practices are applied may also be determined. This information can help users target limited resources to the locations where they will have the most impact. Exploring these scenarios, coupled with monitoring and explanatory information, provides a powerful adaptive management tool to decrease nutrient and sediment loads to the Chesapeake Bay.