maryland’s smart growth and land conservation programs/partnerships
DESCRIPTION
MARYLAND’S SMART GROWTH and LAND CONSERVATION PROGRAMS/PARTNERSHIPS. State of Maryland Parris N. Glendening, Governor Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Lt. Governor Maryland Department of Natural Resources J. Charles Fox, Secretary Karen White, Deputy Secretary. The Problems. Loss of Farmland. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
MARYLAND’S SMART GROWTH
and
LAND CONSERVATION PROGRAMS/PARTNERSHIPS
State of Maryland
Parris N. Glendening, Governor
Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Lt. Governor
Maryland Department of Natural Resources
J. Charles Fox, Secretary
Karen White, Deputy Secretary
Loss of Farmland
• Losing 15,000–25,000 acres/year
The Problems
RoadsideSprawl
conflicts with farming and
costs taxpayers
Large-lot development
consumes forests & natural
resources
Waterfront DevelopmentDamages Fragile Coastlines
The Solutions
A PROUD TRADITION OF LAND CONSERVATION
• Maryland Environmental Trust 1967• Program Open Space 1969• Maryland Agricultural Land
Preservation Foundation 1974• Rural Legacy Program 1997• GreenPrint Program 2001• Community Parks & Playgrounds 2001
The Solutions
Governor Parris N. Glendening’s Smart Growth Initiatives
Nationally recognized land acquisition and conservation programs
•Maryland GreenPrint ProgramFunds the purchase or protection of large tracts of
ecologically sensitive lands within Maryland’s Green Infrastructure
•Community Parks and PlaygroundsProvides funding to local governments and municipalities for
the development of new parks/playgrounds as well as the renovation of older parks
•Rural Legacy ProgramFunds the purchase or protection farmland within designated
Rural Legacy Areas within each Maryland county
Glendening Land Conservation Accomplishments
• $780 million for land preservation, parks and recreation since 1995
• $176.2 million for FY2002, the largest annual budget for land preservation, parks and recreation
• Protected more land than any prior administration – more than 279,334 acres to date (25.8% of all protected lands)
• Protected more open space than lost to development for last 3 years
• 6.2 million acres of land in Maryland• 4.6 million acres of private farm & forest lands• 400,000 acres under easement (6.47%)• 657,150 acres of fed, state and local parks (10.5%)• 25,650 acres private conservation land (0.4%)• 1,081,962 acres total protected lands (17.4%)• 1,227,000 acres developed (19.7%)• Losing 15,000 – 25,000 acres/year to development
Private Farm
Private Forest
Parks
Developed
Maryland’s Lands
• Total Area of State 6,208,025 ac• Total Protected Land 1,081,962 ac
– 17.43%
• Amount of State in watershed 5,822,538 ac– 93.8%
• Bay Agreement Protection needed for 20% of State – 2.57% 159,643 ac
The Challenge
Meet Chesapeake Bay Agreement Goals
Federal PartnershipsAdditional funds and support to further land
conservation goals
• Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF)
- Both State and Federal Allocations
• Direct Grants (Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, Fish and Wildlife, Forest Service)
• Transportation Enhancement Funds (TEA21)
• Administered through the National Park Service via annual allocations to all 50 states
• Also provides direct appropriations for specific projects via Federal allocations
• $75 million awarded in Maryland since 1967 via 357 projects
• Provides funding to both Local and State government for open space and recreation areas
• Funds both Land acquisition and development• Important fund source to “stretch” State dollars
Land and Water Conservation Fund
Successful LWCF Partnership
HOLLY BEACH FARM Anne Arundel County
Conserving
Maryland’s
Waterfront
•Waterfront acreage located along the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge
•Development potential included subdivision for up to 20 waterfront estate lots w/potential water access
•Protection of tidal marshes, hardwood swamps, and woodlands
•Recently named the “Best Real Estate Deal of 2001” by the Washington Business Journal
•Critical resting and feeding ground for many imperiled waterfowl species
•Important winter cover and migratory staging area for waterfowl
Holly Beach FarmProtecting waterfront lands threatened with development
Holly Beach Farm
Partnerships for Conservation
Partners include:
LWCF/National Park Service
Maryland Department of Natural Resources
The Conservation Fund
Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Fish and Wildlife Service
Holly Beach Farm Funding Partners
Land and Water Conservation Fund State Allocation for FY2000 $992,023
TEA21 $2,875,000
National Park Service Direct Grant Federal LWCF Allocation $1,496,700
Maryland’s Program Open Space $1,886,277
Total Project Cost $7,250,000
Maryland’s GreenPrint Program
Based on DNR’s Green Infrastructure Program
• A network of sensitive resources• Patterns of protected lands• Hubs of multiple resources• GIS capability• Identifies protection & management
opportunities
Features IncludeUnique Wetlands•Large, Unmodified Wetlands•Interior Forest•Colonial Waterbird Nesting Sites•Waterfowl Concentration Areas•Rare, Threatened and Endangered Species•Natural Heritage Areas•Habitat Protection Areas•Slopes > 10%•Streams and 268’ Buffer•Close Proximity to Existing Protected Lands
GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
Douglas PointDouglas Point Charles County
GreenPrint
Lower Potomac River Protection Strategy
at Douglas Point
•One of the last remaining true wilderness areas in Maryland
•5,500 Acres targeted for acquisition or permanent protection
•9.5 Miles of shoreline along the Potomac
•Area threatened with sand/gravel mining
Maryland’s goals at Douglas Point include:
- Protection of mature interior upland forest
- Protection of tidal and non-tidal wetlands
- Protection of several stream valley corridors
- Water quality protection for both the Potomac River
and the Chesapeake Bay
- Establishment of significant wildlife habitat/open space
- Protection of threatened and endangered species of
plant and animal
- Protection of significant cultural resources – shipwrecks at Mallows Bay, Native American Sites, and Civil War Sites
Douglas Point links protected lands over an ecological “corridor” to include:
•Federal Lands Piscataway National Park
U.S. Naval Ordinance Station at Indian Head
Naval Facility at Nanjemoy
•State Lands Purse State Park
Smallwood State Park/Chapmans Forest
Chapel Point State Park
Doncaster State Forest
Mattawoman Natural Environmental Area
•County Lands Ruth B. Swan County Park
Friendship Landing County Park
•Protected Lands The Nature Conservancy Heron Rookery
PEPCO PROPERTY AT DOUGLAS POINTCharles County
1,263 Acres – Fee Simple
• 1.8 miles of shoreline along the Potomac River, the Nation’s River, along with mature interior forest, tidal/non-tidal wetlands, stream valleys, and wildlife habitat
• Links protected lands
• Land threatened with large commercial sand/gravel mining
PEPCO Property at Douglas Point Funding Partners
Bureau of Land Management Federal LWCF Allocation
$2,700,000
Maryland’s GreenPrint Program $3,550,000
Total Project Cost$6,250,000
Fiscal 2002 LWCF State allocation dedicated to future land acquisition at Douglas Point
Awards for Land Conservation
• Maryland 1st in the Nation in Land Conservation The Sierra Club, 1999
• National Preservation Award to Governor and DNR for Program Open Space and Rural Legacy National Trust for Historic Preservation, 1999
• American Government Award for Smart Growth initiatives including Rural Legacy
Ford Foundation and Harvard University, 2000• Best Real Estate Deal of 2001, Holly Beach Farm
Washington Business Journal
Maryland’s ranking with other states for Land
Conservation
• 1st in nation for amount of agricultural land preserved
• 2nd in nation for $ spent for agricultural land preservation
• 3rd in nation in $ spent relative to state’s size (per acre of state’s total land area)
• 5th in nation in total $ spent for open space
Source: University of Wisconsin Extension Service
Preserving the Best of Maryland