The Montgomery County Council unanimously passed an updated Forest Conservation Law
/Team Potomac and MoCo Forest Coalition applaud the county for re-asserting itself as a forest protection leader
Breaking news! 📢 🎉 On Tuesday, March 21, 2023, the Montgomery County Council unanimously voted to update its Forest Conservation Law (Bill 25-22) which will guarantee more forests are protected from development.
It's the first significant update to the law in 30 years. The bill, many years in the making, was recommended by the County Planning Department and backed by the Montgomery County Forest Coalition, a network of two dozen environmental organizations and community leaders.
The updated Forest Conservation Law will:
Reduce deforestation by requiring more trees to be replanted when removed for development.
Protect the Potomac River and local streams because trees stabilize stream banks and filter polluted runoff – the fastest-growing source of water pollution in our region.
Mitigate climate effects by protecting tree canopy that captures carbon emissions, absorbs excess rainwater, reduces flooding, and cools stream temperatures.
“This is a historic day for tree protections in Montgomery County. On Tuesday, councilmembers voted not just for trees, but for clean air, wildlife habitat, responsible climate preparedness, and safe streams and drinking water sources. This is an important shift towards a healthier Montgomery County and Potomac River.”
The Council’s actions come at a critical moment as the community faces mounting threats from deforestation and the climate crisis. A statewide forestry study conducted by the Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology found that Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties accounted for 46% of forest loss in all of Maryland in recent years.
“Protecting our forests is always the best nature-based solution to tackle climate change and to create healthy communities for people, wildlife, and waterways.”
“The well-being of our communities and needed resilience in the face of climate change are inextricably tied to the health of our forests. Three cheers to forward-thinking councilmembers and collaboration.”
“We’ve seen in the recent County community heat mapping study that low-income communities and communities of color have higher temperatures than other parts of the County—forests help cool their communities, providing a cost-effective strategy to promote equity, with lots of co-benefits for community members and the environment.”
“Ultimately being able to achieve no net loss of forest in Montgomery County will be a gain for our climate, our watersheds, our health, and all residents of the County.”
Local environmental laws can have far-reaching consequences as Matt Stegman, Maryland Staff Attorney, Chesapeake Bay Foundation explains, “Forests are so important for improving the health of Chesapeake Bay and mitigating climate change. As Montgomery County moves forward on this issue, along with other counties that have recently strengthened local forest laws, we continue to urge state lawmakers to bolster the state’s outdated forest law, which is enabling ongoing statewide forest loss.”
Thanks to the efforts of the Montgomery County Forest Coalition, the Council noted that it received the most constituent emails on this issue during its current session. The Coalition plans to continue its work with the County Council and the county agencies towards improving the Tree Canopy Law and the Roadside Tree Protection Law.
🌳 Thank the Montgomery County Council for protecting our forests!
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Rachel Carson Conservation Park in brookeville, md. image courtesy of john brighenti via flickr (CC BY 2.0)
MONTGOMERY COUNTY FOREST COALITION:
350 MoCo+
Bethesda Green+
Biodiversity for a Livable Climate+
Cedar Lane Ecosystems Study Group
Cedar Lane UU Church
Chesapeake Bay Foundation*
Chesapeake Climate Action Network+
Conservation Montgomery*
Friends of Sligo Creek*
Friends of Ten Mile Creek & Little Seneca Reservoir*
Green Sanctuary Committee of Unitarian-Universalist Church of Silver Spring+
Maryland League of Conservation Voters*
MOCO CAP+
Montgomery Countryside Alliance*
Montgomery County Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions+
Nature Forward*
Potomac Conservancy*
Rock Creek Conservancy*
Safe Healthy Playing Fields+
Sierra Club Montgomery County Maryland*
Sugarloaf Citizens Association+
Stormwater Partners Network*
Takoma Park Mobilization Environment Committee+
Transit Alternatives to Midcounty Highway Extended (TAME Coalition)
White Acres Farm*
*Montgomery County Forest Coalition Member
+Member of the Montgomery County Climate Action Plan (CAP) Coalition.
