February 2017 Update:
Loudon County has project listed as a legislative priority.
MCA has partners across the river who will fight the project.
We are working to establish strong political and preservation protection against this boondoogle.

Previous Post:
What is it that is said… oh yes, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.”  And so it is with the boosters that ascribe global relief from traffic woes to the construction of a Potomac bridge and highway through Montgomery‘s Ag Reserve. More pavement, sprawled from population centers is truly geared to open corridors of farmland and open space to development.  Studies have concluded, time and again, that this proposed boondoggle does nothing to relieve metropolitan Washington gridlock and yet its boosters continue to trumpet it as a priority. 
 
Take note:  MCA and partners will hold fast the line against this boondoogle. And our reasons are sound and compelling.
 
Maryland loses an average of 20,000 acres of farmland annually... 20,000 acres! In Montgomery County, planners and representatives saw this disaster coming and did something proactively in 1980 with the establishment of the Functional Master Plan for the Preservation of Agriculture and Open Space - downzoning and protecting roughly a third of the County, roughly 100,000 acres.
 
 Why? It's really quite simple:

Managed growth vs conventional development (sprawl) = Savings in cost in both human and natural resources. 
 
Taxes and other revenues from residential development do not cover all the public services residents demand. The county needs a balance of land uses, including farms and open space, to reduce overall infrastructure costs and provide sufficient revenue to pay for these services. Otherwise, as more residential development occurs in existing subdivisions, services will be stretched thinner or cut—or property taxes will have to be raised.  Put simply, agricultural land and open space pay more in local tax revenues than they receive back in services.
 
The Reserve provides for local food and fiber production, employing over 10,000 residents, contributing over 300 million dollars to the local economy.
 
Protected open space and well-managed farms provide for clean air shed and high quality water resources.

No shortage of past updates on this issue Click here to read through those. 
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 Tanya Doka Spanhla approached MCA back in 2014 to find land through our Land Link Program to grow some of the crops from Zimbabwe, her homeland. The following year she enrolled in the county's New Farmer Program - run by Montgomery County in partnership with MCA and the County's Ag Extension office. She started Passion to Seed farm on leased land in Germantown and aquired the expertise of the community through MCA's producers listserve when geese were ravaging her produce. She grows items that fellow immigrants have had trouble finding here (see her harvesting pumpkin leaves in this clip from MPTs Farm and Harvest show). 

For those who have never run across it - the most factinating of her crops is the Kiwano- or horned melon. Looking like a heavily defended cucumber with deep emerald coloring and dull spikes, Kiwano has excelent health benefits and a fresh, cucmber-like taste. If you'd like to try it now's your chance, MCA has connected Tanya with Rockville's Dawson's Market and they now stock it. Eat it raw out of the spiky rind or wow friends and family this holiday with the fancy cocktails below. 

Tanya's story is a perfect example of how we at MCA build support around a farm to help it not just survive, but thrive. Connecting farmers with farm land is the beginning - followed by fostering strong community and connection with fellow producers and consumers that help the farmer set down roots and prosper.  

It takes a lot for a farmer to grow a farm (I mean, geese? Who saw that coming?) but you have to grow farmers first- and have farmland available.
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Across Maryland, we lose an average of 20,000 acres of  farmland per year.  We will continue to build the resources that farmers need to thrive but we count on your suport to make it happen. Please make MCA part of of your end-of-year giving plan with your tax eductible donation. 

The Reserve and rural MoCo provide habitat for many creatures. This time of year, it is our fine feathered friends that draw the devoted humans out of bed on cold mornings with binoculars. Each year, birders take part in the international Christmas Bird Count (CBC ) sponsored by Audubon.  Each CBC is conducted in a count circle, 15 miles in diameter on a single day between December 14 and January 4.  On the day of each count, teams of volunteers go out in the count circle and count all the birds they can find, and the results are compiled by Audubon in a public database.  This year’s CBC will be the 117th year! 
 
There are two CBC count circles that overlap Montgomery's upcounty.  The Seneca CBC will be held Sunday, December 18.  The Seneca CBC count circle is centered on Violette’s Lock on the C&O Canal and covers a good portion Montgomery County closer to the Potomac. 

​The Sugarloaf Mountain CBC will be held on Monday, January 2.  The Sugarloaf Mountain CBC count circle is centered on Sugarloaf Mountain and covers a good portion of Montgomery County bordering Frederick County.  For a view of the two count circles  See the map here. (when you go to the website type in “Montgomery County, MD” in the search box and it will zoom in to let you see the two count circles).
 
Both CBCs need additional folks, regardless of your birding skill level, to help count birds in the field.  There is also an important role for folks who can’t get out in the field the day of the count but who live inside the count circle and like to watch birds in their yards and at their bird feeders.  You can contribute very useful information to the CBC too.  Doing a CBC can be a lot of fun.  Both CBCs welcome newer birders to join their counts, and they will make sure you are teamed with a more experienced person for the count.

To get involved in either CBC, please contact the count compilers:  Jim Nelson for the Seneca CBC at [email protected] andJanet Millenson for the Sugarloaf Mountain CBC at  [email protected]  They are happy to answer any questions you may have.

This year, Pantone - world wide authority on colors - has chosen a color meant to rejuvinate the masses. It is called Greenery.

They explain the choice this way: 

We could not agree more. People, particularly those in a busy metro area, need connection with greenery in its many forms: outdoor recreation, healthy local food and just a place to unplug. MCA is the tireless, award winning nonprofit on the front lines of keeping the greenery of local farms and open space thriving on metro's edge. We value your tax deductible end of year gift. 

As the year draws to a close Montgomery Countryside Alliance gives heartfelt thanks to our members and supporters. No question- we could not do it without you. 2016 has been a year of both challenge and success.

Some highlights:

• Education- the Key to our Future: Our program provided for class, field and on farm learning for local high school students. Now expanded to 4 schools and working with partners at Montgomery County Office of Agriculture, the program aims is to ensure that the next generation understands the value of a healthy food system and discovers the potential for careers and participation within it. Erin Binns of Poolesville’s Global Ecology Program writes: “MCA’s program has been excellent and the level of student interest in both their environment and food system is growing.” We are proud to have mentored student filmmakers’ award winning short documentary “The Call of the Land.”
  
  
•  Building Strong Community: Through popular events including Field and Fiddle, the Royce Hanson Award Celebration, Ride for the Reserve, screenings of our “Growing Legacy” film (GrowingLegacyMovie.com) and a new batch of photo safaris, we promoted greater affection for and understanding of The Reserve and agriculture. Through our producers listserve and newsletters we connect farmers and residents to one another, local news and educational opportunities.
  
  
•  Growing Farms = Growing Economy: Our Land Link program continues to thrive – matching farmers with landowners – leading to the addition of over 400 acres of new or expanded local farm businesses (MoCoLandLink.org). Staff worked with local farmers and the County Council to provide for regulation and zoning updates that support agritourism and increased farm earning potential. We helped to establish the new Common Ground Market, allowing Reserve producers an outlet to sell their products near their farms- bringing consumers to the Reserve and saving time, cost and labor for the farmers.
  
  
• Protecting Natural and Historic Resources: Maybe you’ve seen them… our action alerts that foster collaboration to protect water resources, historic rustic roads and communities, encourage wise land use decisions. These alerts and our newly refurbished website provide tools for citizen participation and help our elected representatives understand what is important to us… what matters. The alerts have generated hundreds of emails and calls and results.
  
  

Looking Ahead:

• Growing our local farm economy: The success of local farming is the success of the Reserve. To further that end, we will host a buyer – grower summit this winter helping to connect our producers with markets and restaurants. Tanya writes: “Thanks so much for your help connecting with Dawson’s Market, just delivered my first shipment of horned melon, Kiwano, and I will work with them again next season.”
  
  
• No Outer Beltway and Potomac River Bridge! A recent alert from bypass/bridge booster Northern VA Transportation Alliance declares that the needs of the many must override the opposition of the few. We will ramp up efforts to demonstrate that local food production and land preservation matter to many.
  
  
• Protecting our water: MCA will facilitate important hydrogeological studies of the characteristics and vulnerabilities of the Piedmont Sole Source Aquifer, the groundwater supply that serves as only source of potable water for Reserve farms and communities.
  
  
• Connecting Residents: Our popular Explore Guide will be revised and an interactive online version launched, better linking residents with both goods and destinations in the Reserve.

Your support keeps us both on the ground and at the table where decisions are made – decisions that directly affect the vitality of our farms and preservation of natural resources in rural Montgomery County. With over 15 years of collegial, effective advocacy, MCA has built a reputation as a well-respected organization, and we credit our members and partners with that achievement. In the Reserve we have an opportunity to not merely preserve, but to thrive. Please join us. Membership starts at just $25/year.
Your gift works all year to protect farms, water and open space right here in Montgomery County.