by Kristina Bostick

Become an MCA Sustainer with a recurring donation!

​MCA is working hard every day to protect farmland, open space and our shared environmental resources. You can fund our work all year by setting up a secure, recurring donation through PayPal. Choose the tax-deductible gift level that's right for you and that amount will be withdrawn each month automatically- you can change or cancel your gifts at any time.

​"I support MCA because of the many different ways it works to protect this rural area. I wish I could be more involved but long days, a long commute, and my farm keep me busy. By supporting MCA's work financially, I can stay involved in this effort that is so important to me. Being a sustainer is easy- you set the amount that is right for you and it just keeps rolling." ~ Grace Whitman - MCA Sustainer

by Kristina Bostick

The Agricultural Services Division of the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development will open a Purchase Period for the Building Lot Termination Program beginning on February 1, 2014 and will close at the end of business on April 1, 2014.

No applications can be received prior to February 1, 2014 or after April, 1, 2014.

The application for the Building Lot Termination Program is available from the Agricultural

Services Website at the following link:

Application for the BLT Program:
http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/agservices/resources/files/BLT_Files/blteaseappl.pdf

To be eligible for the BLT program:

1. Property must be zoned Rural Density Transfer
2. Property must have retained Transferrable Development Rights with the land to support a dwelling or dwellings on the property.
3. Must have a County approved on-site waste disposal system (Percs) for each development right proffered for BLT purchase.
4. Soils on the property must comprise at least 50% Class I, II, or III, soils (USDA Soil Capability Classification System -Prime and Productive Soils) DED assists the landowner in making this determination)
5. Property must be at least 50 acres unless DED and the Agricultural Preservation Advisory Board determine the property contains significant agricultural resources worthy of protection.

Once the open purchase period closes, DED will then analyze each applicant's property to determine eligibility and provide a ranking to the Agricultural Preservation Advisory Board (APAB).

The APAB will make a recommendation to the Director of Economic Development as to who should receive BLT purchase offers based on the BLT ranking system.  The Director will make a determination and direct staff to make offers to qualified applicants from the ranking provided by the APAB.

Landowners wishing to discuss the property in context with the BLT program can contact John Zawitoski (301-590-2810) or via email at [email protected]  He will be happy to answer any questions you may have regarding this program.

It should be recognized that it is very likely that there will be more applicants then funding available and therefore not every applicant can be funded.   Any applicant not funded during this open purchase period will be automatically enrolled in subsequent open purchase periods unless otherwise directed they wish to be removed from consideration.

by Kristina Bostick

UPDATE- A new study has shown that in the 2002 drought, around 25% of the Potomac's flow came from Little Seneca Reservoir and Ten Mile Creek. The idea that this is not a current and future water source for 4.3 Million doesn't...hold water.

In an email to supporters, Pulte Homes (one of a few developers looking to start projects in the sensitive Ten Mile Creek watershed)  said the following:

"The lake is not an emergency drinking water supply. It's a backup source of water for the Potomac River during times of severe drought. The Potomac is a drinking water source."

What? That is one serious linguistic shell game. Pulte is just one of a number of people that seem either legitimately or intentionally confused about the importance of the Little Seneca Reservoir and Ten Mile Creek.Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words- like this sign at the edge of the reservoir (again, the fact that its called a "reservoir" should give you a clue that the water is being held for later use):

Not only are the reservoir and Ten Mile Creek part of our back-up drinking water supply serving 4.3 million metro area residents, but the reservoir is checked every year to be sure it can still be called upon to supplement our water supply, as this alert from the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin to the County Exec and Council made clear this summer.  In fact, water from the Reservoir had to be  used for drought abatement in 1999, 2002 and 2010. The Commission also reports that droughts will be getting a lot more common.

So that's the Reservoir - what about Ten Mile Creek. When we say that Ten Mile Creek is the "Last, Best Stream" in the county, its not hyperbole. The creek is what is called a "reference" stream- a stream that is still pristine enough that we can compare degraded streams to it to see how bad off they are. As the first Council work session held yesterday showed, the draft planning board plan for development in the watershed would degrade Ten Mile Creek to the point that it will no longer be clean enough to serve as a reference- dirty just like the others. As one supporter asked, "can't we just have one clean creek?"So, how do we know that the proposed development will degrade the creek? Because the green parts on the right of the map below are not golf courses, that is the color of the water in our backup drinking water supply, as impacted by poorly planned development (click to see it bigger). Ten Mile Creek on the left, is still pristine and currently serves to dilute some of the degraded water. The point is- we have done this all before- the removal of forest cover, laying down impervious surface, and we can see the results.

We still have a pristine stream that serves 4.3 Million people and will only be more important in the future. The current proposals will impact our drinking water and that is why we are making so much noise.

​The Council will decide on this in February- make sure they hear from you now.

Join us on Monday, January 27 for a rally in advance of the Council Worksession on the Water Supply issues related to proposed development in Ten Mile Creek's watershed.

9am- The front steps of the Montgomery County Council Building: 100 Maryland Ave.  Rockville (google map)

​Ten Mile Creek is part of the backup drinking water supply for 4.3 Million residents in the DC area.