When ZTA 20-01 passed in winter 2020, the provision balanced large scale solar generation with viable farms. Among the changes - farms can now install solar arrays generating up to 200% of their use (up from 120%) as well as larger arrays to provide community solar.  Office of Agriculture has compiled the specific stipulations for solar on farms. But you may  have specific questions as to whether new opportunities for solar generation make sense for your farm, but may not know where to start- we are here to help.

MCA is teaming up with the Montgomery County Green Bank and County's Office of Agriculture to help you navigate decisions on solar installation. This is our second in a series of three webinars covering solar installation for different types of residences. Be sure to pick the webinar that best applies to you:

• Our first webinar back in May covered solar installations on single family residences and businesses. 
• This session covers solar generation as an accessory use on farms. 
• The third webinar, date TBD, will cover the provisions for large scale community solar. 

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Farms looking for an in-depth look at community solar information, stay tuned for a future webinar focused exclusively on this topic. 

The following is a communication from Sugarloaf Alliance  sharing some great news about the Frederick County master plan. For a number of months it looked like the planning commission may allow a development carve out in the plan for a single developer who was allegedly in talks with Amazon for a large data center where 500 acres of farmland now stands west of 270. The FredCo planning commission it its vote today has held the boundary for protection where it logically belongs - all the way to the western edge of 270, removing this carve out from the draft.  In doing so they have also upheld a commitment to transparency and public process. Three cheers to our northern neighbors for protecting their singular landscape and environmental resources! (much more background in MCA's action alert on this here) There is more to do here to ensure these changes make it into the final draft but this is surely a moment to celebrate.

The Planning Commission voted this morning to change the northern boundary drawn in the draft Sugarloaf Plan from Route 80 to I-270 and the Monocacy River, and they renamed the plan the Monocacy Sugarloaf Treasured Landscape Management Plan. The Planning Commission confirmed that the boundary of the plan now runs along 270 from the Montgomery County line to the Monocacy River.  Changing the boundary allows for additional protection of land in the area of the Monocacy Battlefield National Park. They "held the line." Thanks so much for all your time, passion and eloquent comments to the Planning Commission! You did it!

Next Steps:  
-Sugarloaf Alliance will continue to pursue changes in the Monocacy Sugarloaf Plan text to correspond to the revised draft boundary. 


- The Sugarloaf Alliance will continue to engage with the Planning Commission regarding the details of the draft Plan overlay zone. 
-The Planning Commission is scheduling additional workshops on the Monocacy Sugarloaf Plan before approving it in its entirety and forwarding it to the State of Maryland Department of Planning for mandatory 60-day review. We will keep you informed about that schedule.
-Following the State’s review and comments, the Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the Plan, either in person or virtually.
-The Planning Commission will review the public hearing testimony, take action on the Plan, and forward it to the County Council for their discussion, public hearing and action. 
What You Can Do Now:
-Write or email the Frederick County Planning Commission to support text changes to the Plan (as above), the overlay zone and your other concerns and suggestions.   PlanningCommission@frederickcountymd.gov  or mail to 30 North Market Street, Frederick MD 21701
-Watch Planning Commission meetings on FCG TV (link on the Sugarloaf-Area-Plan site as above) and call in to share your views and appreciation of their vote on the boundary: 1-855-925-2801, code 8768. Click on this link for meeting agendas and other information: https://frederickcountymd.gov/7992/Planning-Commission
-Review the Sugarloaf Treasured Landscape Management Plan and previous public comments online at https://frederickcountymd.gov/8046/Sugarloaf-Area-Plan under “Meetings and Outreach.
-Reach out to your neighbors and to related organizations to make sure that interested citizens understand the importance of upcoming decisions on the Monocacy Sugarloaf Plan to the future protection and sustainability of the Monocacy Sugarloaf area.

Thrive 2050 is the update to the master plan that will govern how our county meets our challenges going forward. Though it is a comprehensive plan - the chapter on environmental protection and climate resilience was removed from the draft plan and relegated to a non binding appendix (much more on that here). These crucial chapters need to be re-instated in the main plan for this document to properly guide protection of critical resources going forward - notably our water supply. In fact a lot of the goals and action items were stripped from this final plan after the first round of public comment (with word counts as a metric, this plan now sets 85% fewer goals, offers half the protection and is 60% less focused on equity)

With Thrive 2050 not yet being ready for approval in the eyes of many in the County, incoming Council President Albornoz has proposed a series of listening sessions hosted by the county advisory boards representing the geographic areas of the County. While this is a welcome development, finding out how to participate in these sessions has been challenging. We have gathered below the zoom links and for each session (The Silver Spring and East County sessions already occurred). Click these links at the appointed time to join:

• Jan. 5 at 7 p.m., East County Advisory Board Committee meeting; 
• Jan. 10 at 7 p.m. Silver Spring Advisory Board Committee meeting;
• Jan. 20 at 7 p.m., Mid-County Advisory Board Committee meeting
• Jan. 24 at 7 p.m., UpCounty Advisory Board Committee meeting;​  
• Jan. 27 at 7 p.m., Western Montgomery County (Bethesda/Chevy Chase) Advisory Board Committee meeting
  
  

Questions for Community Members 
The goal of these sessions has been for residents to weigh in on the following questions. If you are unable to attend a zoom session, you can use our form to send the council your answers to these questions: 
​
1. Is this vision consistent with your views of how the County should develop and grow over the next three decades? 
2. In your opinion, what are the three most important issues facing the County as it relates to land use (such as availability of affordable housing, accessible, convenient and reliable transportation, access to parks and open space within your community, preservation of historic and environmental resources, and proximity to jobs, retail, entertainment, arts and culture). 
3. Does Thrive address these issues in its vision, policies or practices? If not, what would you add or change? 
4. In order to maintain and improve the County’s quality of life, what issues should the County focus on in the next 20-30 years- if these are different from the issues discussed earlier? 
5. Do the policies and practices in Thrive provide sufficient guidance to address these issues? If not, what would you add or change?  

With so much going on, it can be hard to find time to engage with community issues, Thrive 2050 will underlay the decision making for the County going forward and as currently written leaves a lot of important items out.  This plan is poised for approval soon as needs your voice. Please take a moment to answer the listening questions here. 

In another very different year, MCA once again found success on a number of fronts in protection of our  critical resources. As is true this and every year of our 20 year history, our tenacious advocacy and some notable successes are the result of local support. Put plainly... we cannot do what we do without you.
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We would be honored by your end of year tax-deductible gift. 

On this final day of the year we thought we would roll the tape on a few notable things we accomplished together this year.  

All the while, the sun shone, the rain fell and MoCo's farmers continued to do what they have always done - albeit requiring big pivots to keep customers and staff safe. Local food demand continues to grow and no wonder- the tastiest, freshest food can be found at your local market or through a Community Ag Share directly from your farmer. We give thanks year round for the essential work and herculean efforts of those who tend the land and feed us. 

When we think about habitat loss, an image comes to mind of acres of imperiled wild forest on a mountain side somewhere. While protecting the wilderness we have left is important, the world is increasingly made up not of vast wild acres of land but many, many smaller green spaces. There are things we can do to protect the slightly more tame outdoor spaces close to home as they are critical to the wildlife in our midst and our survival as well. 

North America has lost some 3 billion breeding adult birds since 1970, with every biome impacted. As is often reported, pollinator decline is a real and pressing problem with impacts on the global food system. The solution to these challenges is the same - plant more of the plants that these creatures need for food and shelter and plant them in as many places as possible. Pest pressures go down, soil health and drought tolerance goes up and even neighboring cultivated crops benefit. You do not need to own a pristine mountain forest for your outdoor space to be part of the solution. 

Meadow or prairie strips on farms are benefiting large scale producers across the midwest. Here in the mid-Atlantic, farmers are 'stacking' the benefits of pollinators and native plants like the photo above from One Acre Farm. Beekeepers and farmers work to mutual benefit when field edges are home to native plants like Goldenrod. 
This native revolution is happening on Swiss Embassy land in the District and just announced this month, 20% of London's green spaces will be rewilded. 

Whether it is a windowbox, a few pots on the patio or a whole lawn - giving over some of your green space to natives makes you part of the solution to habitat loss. Read on for resources and let us know if you have some to share.  

​Resources:
How to Rewild your Garden in 10 steps
​Planting Native Helps the Bay 
​MD Extension Native Plant Guide
MD Native Plant Society
Montgomery County Beekeepers
"Nature's Best Hope" by Doug Tallamy an in depth look at why and how to plant natives at home

In February of 2021, Montgomery County passed a ZTA 20-01 that balances solar generation with large scale solar generation on farms in the Ag Reserve by siting solar on less productive soil in the Reserve and away from stream buffers and steep slopes. (Thinking about Solar on your farm? Join us for a webinar.) Yet still we hear that this balanced approach amounts to a moratorium that stymies progress toward carbon reduction goals.

The growing consensus is that a sole focus on open "undeveloped" lands for renewable energy generation gobbles up another dwindling climate solution resource- farm and forest land. As multiple reports from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation have highlighted  farms and forests are short sighted places to site solar projects. CBF has released guide for large scale renewable energy generation siting called  Principles and Practices for Realizing the Necessity and Promise of Solar Power the guide calls for prioritizing marginal lands before viable farmland and forests. 

The article from the Yale School of the Environment quotes a study that finds the typical 5 acre parking lot at a Walmart can host a 3 MW array to power the store and cars parking there or surrounding homes. WAMATA has recently partnered to build this sort of canopy at 4 metro stations. ​

While there is promise in "Agrivoltaics" where pollinator feed and even vegetables are grown under panels - farmers need more certainty about this new field before literally betting the farm on a technology that may occupy a field for over 25 years. Thankfully, a pilot program is ongoing in the Reserve in partnership with UMD. 
 

There is no doubt that we need to transfer our grid to renewable energy - but a holistic approach to how our de-carbonization goals are achieved is the smarter long term solution. 

Thrive 2050, the County’s general plan update being considered by the Council, is troubling many residents regarding myriad shortcomings and inconsistencies.  A central concern remains - the significant overhaul by MC Planning of the draft that was crafted with public input (we breakdown the striking differences between the plans here)- a move that relegated any discussion of how we meet environmental goals and climate resilience into an Non-binding appendix of suggestions.

And yet the plan seems to be speeding toward approval at the Council.

There is one glaring omission from the plan that should give the Council pause.
​
Why does Thrive barely mention water resources - the one most critical resource we can't do without?​


 We can't emphasize this problem better than supporter Amanda Farber did on Facebook:

In a plan meant to chart the future of our community- what you focus on is what you get more of - so where is the focus on the most essential resource we need?  The plan points to a 2010 functional water resources plan for guidance - that plan is both dated and expires in 2030. 

Thrive Omissions:

• The plan makes no mention of: "Chesapeake Bay" , "Potomac River", or "Patuxent River" and passing mention of the sole source aquifer that supplies most of the Reserve. The plan seems willfully disinterested in where our water comes from or where it is ultimately going.

• Unlike the plans of  surrounding jurisdictions , Thrive contains no watershed maps or stream quality maps and thus no discussion of their import.
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• The plan makes no mention of projections from the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin that by 2040 we will have severe droughts where demand will far exceed supply, even with the 4 proposed new reservoirs.
  
  
• The Thrive draft moving toward approval already has 60% fewer instances of the word "equity" than the draft created with public input. Water is an equity issue. The quality of the water that flows from the tap and through our streams matters to all neighborhoods. Like other green infrastructure like canopy cover,  stream mapping would show that poorer neighborhoods have disproportionate water quality deficits with the associated public health issues.

The Council can not responsibly pass Thrive 2050 unless it includes a comprehensive vision of how we secure and distribute our water resources. 
Restoring the environmental chapter that was relegated to the appendix would go a long way to meeting this need. 
Take 2 minutes to let the Council know your thoughts before the next listening session on December 15: 

The Ag Reserve lost an important person this year. Gwen Reese founded the Sugarland Ethno-History Project and lovingly preserved the history of the St Paul Church that was the center of the Sugarland freeman's community.  At MCA we were honored to call Gwen a board member and friend. 
It is a real gift that before Gwen passed Heritage Montgomery did this great video profile of both her and the church. 
In Gwen's absence, the Sugarland Ethno-History board has been busy and have just revitalized their website.  Those looking for a thoughtful gift and a good read can pick up the SEHP book "I Have Started For Canaan" that highlights the vibrant history of the Sugarland Community. 

While a more joyful time than last year, we are entering another Covid holiday season. Let others await more stuff on shipping containers running late - we can build a meaningful holiday right here and now.
Everyone has heard of Black Friday. But there is a far more thoughtful way to kick off the holiday season. On Black Friday, many are choosing to skip the stores and instead "Opt Outside" - a campaign started in 2015 when outdoor retailer REI closed its stores, website and fulfillment center on the busiest shopping day of the year and paid its employees to go recreate with their families. Another successful campaign, "Small Business Saturday" invited shoppers to keep their dollar in the local economy and shop the small local stores that make a community thrive. 

Much like last year - local is the new normal, outside is the new inside and resilience is the new way- the Ag Reserve has offered resilience to our region in this crisis and this will continue into the colder months with unique gifts and recreation close by. And speaking of supporting local, may we humbly suggest your support your local farmland protection nonprofit? Giving Tuesday is November 30 this year and we would be honored by your tax-deductible gift. 
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Find a park or trail to opt outside to with your family here.

Shop Small, Green and Local ​
"Small Business Saturday" is November 27 this year - there are so many Moco grown/raised/crafted gifts for you and everyone on your list. 

Markets: Staying with the theme of outdoors - many year round markets operate in MoCo and have not just the best local food around but artisans making unique gifts - find a full list of farmers markets here. 

Countryside Artisans Studio Tour: (December 3-5) Holidays and each fall the artists of rural Montgomery County have open studio hours and a map for a self guided driving tour. Pottery, glassware, fiber arts, paintings and more are available. 
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​MoCo Made: Many prepared foods and spirts are created all over MoCo.

The Solution: table this zoning text amendment and convene a group of stakeholders to collaborate on an appropriate means of addressing the concerns of the landscaping industry. This solution is supported by the Planning staff recommendation to oppose this change. 
​"Staff is very concerned about the negative impacts Landscape Contractors often have on neighboring residential uses, which are directly related to their operations and can only be properly mitigated through detailed analysis and regulatory conditions imposed by the Conditional Use process."

Our Ask: please take two minutes to send a quick letter here. 

Also let us know if you are affiliated with a civic organization that would like to sign on to group correspondence. Email us at:
Info@mocoalliance.org
Public hearing on November 30, 2021  has been limited to only 5 speakers and is now full. So the council needs to hear from the public via emails and/or calls in advance of 11/30.

​The details:

Proposed change to zoning code (see the zones impacted on the map above):

See the full ZTA linked here.  
​Summary here. 

Check out a video from our Re-Leaf partners at the County Planning Department. Our big thanks to Kristin Taddei at Planning, Will, Lee and all our other landowners hosting their own 'forever forest'. 
If you live in the Reserve and have a stream area on your property get in touch and we can set up a site visit. Learn More Here. 

Your Thanksgiving may still not be back to normal this year but however big or small your table this year, you can fill it with the best local food MoCo's farms have to offer.  One silver lining of the pandemic is some farms that have turned to online ordering, making it even easier to grab your harvest. 

Year Round Markets: 
Whether you are making an old favorite or finding new side dishes to try - they will be better with local ingredients grown right here in MoCo. A Farmers Market the week before Thanksgiving is a truly joyful place. Find your market here. 
Other On-Farm Markets: 
​RB Savage and Sons Farm - Dickerson. Selling beef, chicken, eggs and preserves
Savage Acres Farm - Dickerson, Selling farm fresh beef, pork and chicken year round. Read up on their grass-fed beef operation
Kingsbury Orchard - Dickerson. Cider, Apples, Asian Pears
Lewis Orchards - Dickerson. Lots of locally grown produce and preserves in stock - taking pre-orders for pies until 11/20.

Pre-Ordering Pre-Made Items and Farm Fresh Ingredients:

• Though Fox Hollow Farm Market's turkeys are all sold out by this time this year - they provide fully baked or 3/4 baked breads and deserts for your table.  Check them out in Gaithersburg/Laytonsville.
• Common Root Farm of Derwood has turned to online ordering and curbside pickups (along with a few local markets) in the pandemic and sells both their own sustainably grown produce and also soups, grains and spices from other local businesses. Wednesday at noon their online store updates with items available for Saturday pickup. 

Wine and Beer:
Rocklands Farm Winery
​Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard
Windridge Vineyard
Waredaca Brewing Co. 
​Brookeville Beer Farm

Ideas for Next Year
No turkeys you say? Yes, the small farms of the Reserve mostly operate on tighter margins than larger livestock farms and customers need to pre-order their birds early to be sure there are homes for each bird that is raised - usually ordering by mid October or earlier. Some places to secure your bird next year:

• Nick's Organic Farm  (small chance you could get a "reserve" bird this year, contact them.)
• Fox Hollow Farm Market
• RB Savage and Sons

There are a number of CSAs (Community Supported Ag) farms in MoCo as well where you buy in to get great produce from spring to fall - strawberries and peas to tomatoes through to sweet potatoes and butternut squash. Is a CSA for you? Take our quiz and find your farmer here.

We talk about farmland lost to development all the time - (175 acres per hour in the US).  While development pressures are the biggest factor in Maryland farm loss, climate change and rising sea levels are bringing more salt into the low lying fields of the Eastern Shore, rendering fields un-useable. More interaction between farm fields and higher tides also means more runoff into streams and the Bay. 

Like all the effects of climate change, there are ways our inventive species is trying to adapt. New salt tolerant crops (quinoa anyone?), and creating easements to protect the new marshland that was once farmland. 

Two great reads to help get a handle on the crisis -
"Coastal farmers in Maryland and across Mid-Atlantic being driven off their land as salt poisons the soil" - Baltimore Sun 
A fascinating interactive map and photo essay showing the impact of salt water on the Eastern Shore's Fields and Forests - "Our Changing Chesapeake"

There is a lot to discover both in and outside the Reserve about African American History. 
We are happy to share the self guided tour put together by Heritage Montgomery. 
Click below for the full size brochure and Map. Background on all the sites here. 

Also: Check out the lovingly rendered history of the Sugarland Freeman's community of Poolesville in the book "I Have Started For Canaan" by the Sugarland Ethnohistory Project. 

Update 11.8 The PHED Committee has released their draft of the Thrive Plan. Much like the staff recommendations, the changes are mostly in the introduction and conclusion sections of the plan.
Still missing from the plan are the chapters that specifically outline the goals and action items on environmental protection and climate mitigation that were stripped from the plan after the public hearings (see: Thrive By the Numbers for a comparison of the document created with public input and this far more watered down one the Council is moving toward approval). 
Councilmember Hans Riemer even called for these sections to be put back into the plan at a worksession in July. CM Riemer says  “I’m definitely convinced we need to have the chapter on the environment back in the main plan. Like no question about that. Let’s do that." So we are left to wonder - where is is? 

Update 10.22: The PHED Committee of the Council met on moving Thrive forward. While the inclusion of more language promoting Green Infrastructure, most of the changes are in the conclusion and introduction portions of the document.  See the staff recommendations here. 

The Thrive 2050 plan, the master plan update process that will guide the county's growth and development for the coming decades is nearing approval by the Council. Many residents are frustrated with the lack of concrete recommendations in the plan that take on real challenges like affordable housing, equity and climate preparedness.  As the plan moves forward, the county seems to be spending more time calling these legitimate concerns "myths" to be dispelled in both text and video form than revising the plan to make it stronger. 

It is fact, not myth, that the draft Thrive plan does not give appropriate emphasis to climate change response, the importance of green infrastructure and the role of the Reserve in our resilience both in food and fiber production and biodiversity. In general, the final plan offers 85% less actions than the one created from public listening sessions plus many other alarming reductions as seen below. (Check out Thrive by the Word Counts to see the data.) 
Dismissing concerns and those who express them  (repeatedly and in slick production) about the implications of the draft “Thrive” plan as myths reflects the continued disdain held for the public by Planning. 

We are proud to have joined with other civic organizations to call on the Council to add a comprehensive green infrastructure plan as a core priority of the Thrive 2050 plan. Green Infrastructure includes things like: interconnected greenway spaces, conservation landscaping including tree plantings and rain gardens, and constructed wetlands. 

This letter does not just call for green infrastructure to be made a priority - but the equitable distribution of the green infrastructure as well. 

The measure of "Tree Equity" is a term coined by planners to address the the disparity in green infrastructure in low income neighborhoods. Lower tree canopy is statistically correlated with poor health outcomes.  Green infrastructure can make healthier and more resilient communities (improving air quality, reducing flooding, reducing temperature)  and makes the biggest impact in the most vulnerable neighborhoods, just the sort of solution we should be prioritizing as we plan decades ahead. 

The letter urging Green Infrastructure planning has gone to the Council but we need your help to amplify the message - please take two minutes to send the Council a note. 

An Update- There have been some who insist that green infrastructure and environmental protection is already a part of the draft Thrive plan. For those wanting to take a deeper dive into the shortcomings of the plan on this score - please see the explainer here: "When Protecting the Environment is like dressing on the side."

That's why we were so pleased to have two recent profiles of the program that showcase these farms.
First two articles in Bethesda Beat highlighting the nuts and bolts of the program and profiling some of the farmers and land owners who have matched as a result of the program. 

Next, a video from Montgomery County Cable focusing on Beauty Blooms Farm - the partnership between landowner Susan and Farmer Nia that sent 900 lbs of food to Manna Food Center this season. 

More to Discover:

• Dodo Farms Profile on Maryland Farm and Harvest
• Is a CSA For Me?
• Tips for a successful match: Farmer and Landowner
• Landowner Information Session Recording

MCA stands with our colleagues in Frederick working towards transparency and public process as they endeavor to find out why a 500 acre area has been left out of the Sugarloaf Treasured Landscape Management Plan section of the larger Master Plan revision for some as yet unspecified development. A Public Information Request has been filed by Envision Frederick. 
As you can see above - the 500 acre carve out is west of 270 - the highway has historically the defining eastern border of the Sugarloaf planning zone  just as the Monocacy River difines the zone to the west.
​ 
More Background here from Kai Hagen, former County Commissioner in a piece titled "Hold the Line"

Frederick News Post (8/23): "Frederick County residents voice concerns with Sugarloaf preservation plan"
​Op-Ed- Development Trumps Preservation in Sugarloaf Plan

LAND has provided Poolesville Elementary students with opportunities to make an impact on nature right on our own school grounds. They are able to differentiate for every age to make each child feel engaged in projects they will feel proud of for a season and sometimes even years. Amy and Garth have a passion about nature that is contagious even for those that are afraid to get a little dirty. Children will carry these hands-on learning experiences they provide with them throughout their lives to make our Earth a better place. We are so thankful to have LAND as part of our school community.”
Amy Hufnagel
K Teacher Poolesville Elementary School

Have you seen them? - Pods of eager kids gathered outdoors in and around the Agricultural Reserve with gloves and rakes and shovels and questions, lots of great questions… Somewhere in the middle you will find husband and wife Garth and Amy Seely, the dedicated movers behind non-profit Landscape and Nature Discoveries (LAND) for 15 years. Connecting kids with, and building affinity for, the natural world through hands on projects at local schools has garnered respect and praise from educators, parents, and most importantly, budding ecologists. MCA recognizes that our best future, and that of the Reserve specifically, will require new hands and voices committed to conservation. Amy shares: “Often, we run across kids who are hesitant to be in nature, hesitant to explore new things or get their hands dirty. Watching a child move through some fear and fully participate in the activities is very impactful.”
In addition to the work through LAND, the Seely’s with their two son’s Thayer and Cade, work the family landscaping business Gardens by Garth, launched the same year the Reserve was created in 1980.
 Join us in celebrating the work of LAND and the Seelys. Event Information coming soon.
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Before the pandemic, there was concern that links between kids and the natural world were fraying with dire consequences for health and activity levels. And then, kids spent the past however many months in front of screens for school and play. 

Getting outside has all the health benefits it always has, plus it is now the safer option for gathering with friends. 

​There is wonder to be found in your own neighborhood but if you'd like to go farther afield, these nature centers and programs offer great opportunities to connect kids with the natural world:


Black Hill Nature Programs
Brookside Nature Center
Croydon Creek Nature Center
Locust Grove Nature Center
Meadowside Nature Center
Audubon Naturalist Society Green Kids Program
Mobile Agricultural Science Lab Program via MarylandAgricultural Education Foundation
Close Encounters with Agriculture
Mobile Nature Center: Nature on Wheels
Local chapters of the Izaak Walton League


And the recipients of the 2021 Reserve Champion – Royce Hanson Award:
Landscape and Nature Discoveries

Update 10/21: A rally on campus to protect the woods highlighted the growing chorus of local and campus leaders defending the woods against sale to a private developer. Coverage from Maryland Matters. 

We have been tracking a consequential development at the University of Maryland in PG County where  Guilford Woods a ~15 acre publicly held forest at the southern edge of campus is the target of development plans for more graduate housing. This site includes the headwaters of a stream, Guilford Run, and is part of the Anacostia watershed. 

Some of the trees in this mature mixed forest date to the Civil War, this development proposal would take this accessible and established forest out of public ownership and sell it to a private developer. 

A group of local residents has galvanized around this forest in order to Save Guilford Woods. This group has identified places where the needed housing can be developed closer to transit by re-developing other areas surrounding campus instead of losing this forest which is part of the PG Green Infrastructure Network. 

MCA has written to UMD President Pines and urges others (particularly those with UMD connections) to do the same. Find all you need to pen your email here. 

Subject: Forests are Infrastructure, and Equity: Protect Guilford Woods
​
Greetings President Pines, 

We are writing from Montgomery County's Agricultural Reserve to urge University leaders to protect Guilford Woods. 

Ecologists are just beginning to understand the real benefits of tree cover and forests for surrounding communities. Specifically, the critical importance of forests in already developed areas for public health has expanded tree cover from a solely environmental concern to a social justice issue as the idea of "tree equity" comes to the fore. Despite the University's commitment to climate mitigation, the campus is still a heat island - an effect tempered by the surrounding forest - a rare urban forest that is accessible to residents relying on transit.

Here in the Ag Reserve, we have been working with the Montgomery County Planning Department to identify sites and plant forests along stream banks in our county to mitigate the loss of forests to development similar to this proposal. From first-hand experience of this work, finding and planting these parcels is time consuming and expensive and it takes many years for these forests to become established ecosystems like Guilford Woods.


While reforestation is important, it is as they say - the best time to plant a forest was 20 years ago - with the addendum that the best time to preserve one is today. 

Forests, particularly established forests are infrastructure and Guilford Woods is in fact designated a part of the PG Green Infrastructure Network - there is no better or cheaper way to engineer the water and air quality, habitat, flood control, cooling and other health benefits it provides the campus and surrounding community. 

We ask that you consider the many other proposed locations for needed student housing as Guilford Woods is already serving its highest use as an established urban forest. 

Thank You For Your Consideration, 

Montgomery Countryside Alliance