smart growth strategies- mike kane
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Presentation given by Mike Kane on June 4, 2012 at the Third Annual Choose Clean Water ConferenceTRANSCRIPT
PIEDMONT ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCILPIEDMONT ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL
Smart Growth Strategies to Support Clean Water
Michael Kane
Piedmont Environmental Council
Choose Clean Water
June 4, 2012
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A non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and protecting the Piedmont’s
rural economy, natural resources, history and beauty
since 1972.
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Conservation efforts within the Piedmont have preserved 300,000 acres within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, andmost with riparian buffers.
Washington DC
The Piedmont
Chesapeake Bay Watershed
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Warrenton
Our Region
Washington
Leesburg
To Charlottesville
Fredericksburg
Annapolis
Waldorf
Piedmont Environmental Council
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Tremendous Land Conversion and Development
• Over 47,000 new housing units constructed between 2000 to 2010 (76% increase)
• Over 142,000 new residents 2000 to 2010 (84% increase)
• Over 53,000 acres of farmland lost between 1997 and 2007
• A decade of land disturbance and growing impervious surface
Loudoun County, Virginia
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Does land use policy matter?
• More land disturbance
• More impervious surface
• Relies on gray infrastructure to provide WQ solutions
• Minimizes land disturbance
• Minimizes impervious surface
• Relies on green infrastructure to provide WQ solutions
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Does land use policy matter?
It matters if you care about the cost of compliance.
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An Integrated Approach
• Attention to land use and transportation planning that focuses on smart growth alternatives
• Strategically conserve land
• Encourage best management practices on agricultural lands
• Promote and provide guidance for creating sustainable wildlife habitat on private lands
• Foster citizen engagement and the creation of a community wide conservation ethic
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Smart Growth—Urban and Suburban Context
Well-designed, higher density development can be good for the environment, especially when located in areas that are already developed, are walkable, and are served by transit. Good design includes parks and low impact development for stormwater management.
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Smart Growth—Rural Landscape Conservation
• Protect critical natural systems and resources
• Preserve an area’s unique identity—its “sense of place”
• Promote rural economy compatible with the landscape
• Direct growth to where it can be supported
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Land Use Plan—Foundation for Landscape Conservation
• Loudoun County Revised General Plan (2002)
• Rural / Agricultural Zoning (2003)
• Maintain rural road network
• Policies supporting preservation of natural, historic, and scenic resources
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In 2002, 25,850 acres of conserved land
Loudoun’s surprising conservation story
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By 2012, more than 50,000 acres of conserved land
Over 25,000 acres conserved between 2002 and 2012
97% increase in land conserved over the past decade
Loudoun’s surprising conservation story
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WHO CARES! The rural land use policies and subsequent land
conservation only maintain current conditions. They do little to substantively improve water quality now.
Loudoun’s surprising conservation story
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Strategic Conservation—Goose Creek Watershed
Goose Creek Watershed
Thousands of residents and businesses in Northern Virginia rely on the Goose Creek watershed to provide a safe and adequate supply of public drinking water
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Historic Landscape
• 16 state and national historic districts
• Civil War battlefields
Scenic Beauty
• State designated Scenic River
• 17 state designated Scenic Byways
Natural Resources
• Diverse Piedmont habitats
• Public and private drinking water source
• Basic inputs essential to a vibrant and diverse rural economy
The Goose Creek Watershed…….a remarkable landscape.
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PEC Strategic Initiatives—Goose Creek Watershed
• Watershed Planning—Funded Watershed Assessment in partnership with Goose Creek Association and Ctr for Watershed Protection
• Conservation—Employed $185K from GC Conservation Fund to preserve 5 key properties totaling 2,246 acres
• Land Use—Established Western Goose Creek Conservation Fund to address ensure integrity of land use plan and zoning
• BMPs—Partnered with Goose Creek Association to launch the “Goose Creek Challenge”
Highlights include:
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Conservation in the Goose Creek Watershed
• Over 83,000 acres conserved in the watershed (34%)
• Over 39,000 acres conserved since 2002 (87% increase)
• Most new easements include riparian buffer provisions
• Many amended easements that include riparian buffer provisions
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Conservation provides the platform for restoration
• 91 miles of fencing (VA Ag BMP)
• 738 acres of stream buffer through CREP & VA Ag BMP
• 117 acres of DOF reforestation
• 250 water troughs
• Cover crops and no-till
Over 800 Ag Best Management practices completed in the watershed
Between 2003 and 2010:
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PEC’s Sustainable Habitat Program
• Advising landowners on managing land for habitat
• Coordinating collaborations among neighbors on habitat restoration
• Partnering with HOAs on sustainable landscaping practices
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Making the land use connection
Sound Land Use Planning leads to…
Opportunities for landscape scale conservation that provide…
A platform for improving land management that facilitate…
Water quality improvements
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Thank You!
Michael KaneLand Conservation OfficerPiedmont Environmental [email protected]