Montgomery County Council has recently introduced the amended Forest Conservation Law Bill 25-22
This bill is a step in the right direction, but it needs strengthening.
The public hearing is October 4th. We need YOU.
Please join us and the environmental organizations advocating together as the Montgomery County Forest Coalition to support passing of strong legislation. Email and / or call the Montgomery County Council Members asking them to strengthen Forest Bill 25-22!
The MoCo Forest Coalition is made up of the following member organizations
Audubon Naturalist Society, Potomac Conservancy, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Friends of Sligo Creek, Conservation Montgomery, Sierra Club Montgomery County, Defensores de la Cuenca, Friends of Ten Mile Creek & Little Seneca Reservoir, Montgomery Countryside Alliance, Rock Creek Conservancy, and MoCo Stormwater Partners Network
Montgomery County Forest Coalition - Top Recommendations for Updates/Amendments to MoCo Forest Conservation Law (FCL)
1. Protect existing Forest Ecosystems.*
All remaining pre-existing Forests in MoCo are to be designated & treated as priority forest in FCL. First priority is to protect existing forest ecosystems.
• All remaining forest cover is considered priority and may only be removed upon appropriate findings by the Planning Director or Planning Board.
• Certain types of forests may only be removed with a variance granted by the Planning Board or Planning Director. Types of forests and trees that would receive a stronger level of protection and require a variance to be removed include forested: Floodplains; Stream Buffers; Forested Stream Buffers along Ephemeral Streams; Steep Slopes; Critical Habitats; Contiguous Forests; Forest Connective Corridors; Rare, Threatened, & Endangered Species; Historic Site trees; Champion Trees and other exceptionally large trees; areas designated as “Priority Save Areas” in Master Plan or any Functional Plan. • Forest removal subject to a variance must be replaced with forest ecosystem at a 2:1 ratio.
2. Strengthen replanting ratios to ensure no-net-loss.*
• Re-planting requirement strengthened from ¼ acre planted for every 1 acre removed to 2 acres forest ecosystem planted for every 1 acre removed; or
• Re-planting requirement strengthened from ¼ acre planted for every 1 acre removed to 1 acre forest ecosystem planted for every 1 acre removed, with no retention credit.
• Require that at least 75% of the re-planting requirement be satisfied by the newly re-planted forest ecosystem.
3. Strengthen Watershed Considerations.*
For meeting afforestation and reforestation requirements, areas obtained outside the County or outside the sub-watershed where forest was removed for development, the requirement shall be that existing forest retained through forest mitigation bank shall be at a 4:1 ratio, or replanting of forest ecosystem shall be done at a 2:1 ratio .
4. Strengthen Re-planting requirements to require the planting of Forest Ecosystem, not just trees.* When what’s being removed is forest ecosystem, what’s being replaced should be forest ecosystem as well. Reforestation or afforestation of forest ecosystem includes consideration of, payment for, and maintenance to establish the following in the re-planting: healthy soil; drainage; healthy fungi in the soil; healthy micro biotic communities in the soil; biomass; groundcover; shrub layer; tree understory layer; tree canopy layer; diversity of different types of trees and plants.
+= MOCO FOREST COALITION RECOMMENDATION
^ = MOCO FOREST COALITION, PLANNING DEPARTMENT, AND PLANNING BOARD RECOMMENDATION *= MOCO FOREST COALITION RECOMMENDS STRONGER REQUIREMENTS THAN PLANNING DEPARTMENT AND PLANNING BOARD
5. Forest stand delineation must be evaluated & submitted to Planning prior to submitting any application plan for development of a site.^
Adjust the timeline for approval of a Natural Resources Inventory/Forest Stand Delineation (NRI/FSD) so that an approved NRI/FSD must be submitted with certain development plans. This change will ensure that high quality forest is properly considered and preserved whenever possible.
6. Eliminate certain CR exemptions.^
Exclude activities located within the Commercial Residential (CR) zone classification from qualifying for the (s)(1) and (s)(2) FCP exemptions to require forest mitigation for activities in this zone that are currently receiving the highest density but providing the least forest mitigation.
7. Expanding mitigation requirements for “variance trees” to include mitigation for variance trees located within a forest.^
With the proposed amendment, removal of any variance tree, regardless of whether it is inside or outside of a forest, would require replanting at a minimum ratio of 1 caliper inch replaced for every 4 inches of trunk diameter removed (the Planning Department’s current standard for removal of “variance trees” outside of forest).
8. Tighten requirements around forest conservation easements so that they may not be so easily extinguished or relocated.+
• For all existing forest cover subject to an existing forest conservation easement, the area of forest removed must be reforested at a ratio of 5 acres of forest ecosystem for every 1 acre removed. • This deterrent allows forest banks time to become mature forest ecosystems, and also keeps forest banks in the sub-watershed where they were originally intended to be planted.
9. Allow landscaping to meet requirements in limited circumstances.^
Allowing landscaping, including planting trees in rights-of-way, to meet both reforestation or afforestation requirements in equity focus areas, to encourage tree planting wherever possible in areas of the county characterized by high concentrations of lower-income households, people of color, and individuals who are not fluent in English. Outside of equity focus areas, landscaping on site could be used to meet afforestation requirements and could include landscaping in the rights-of-way.
Additional considerations:
• Increase resources for Forest Conservation Staff.^
We understand and support the need to expand the Planning Department’s forest conservation staff to increase capacity for the department to support applicants and enable conservation of existing forest by creating additional programs, such as connecting applicants seeking off-site mitigation opportunities with property owners willing to protect forest on their properties.
• Create tax incentives and/or subsidy programs to support forest conservation.^
There may be additional opportunities and resources to further support and encourage additional forest conservation.
+= MOCO FOREST COALITION RECOMMENDATION
^ = MOCO FOREST COALITION, PLANNING DEPARTMENT, AND PLANNING BOARD RECOMMENDATION
*= MOCO FOREST COALITION RECOMMENDS STRONGER REQUIREMENTS THAN PLANNING DEPARTMENT AND PLANNING BOARD
Opinion: Montgomery County must update and strengthen its outdated forest protections -from Bethesda Magazine July 9, 2022
In August 2022, 118 organizations signed a letter to Secretaries Haaland and Vilsack that urges them - "for purposes of permanently ending logging threats to the climate and biodiversity values of federal forests, to adopt a definition of “mature and old-growth” that includes all forests and trees older than 80 years. It is critical that your agencies move quickly to propose a rule that would protect these trees and forests from logging, with whatever exceptions can be shown to be necessary to preserve their values, allow for necessary wildlife management, honor government commitments, and safeguard the public."
Bill 25-22 "No Net Loss of Forest" was introduced to the Montgomery County Council on Sept 13, 2022. Bill 25-22 and Regulation No. 25-22, contain changes to Chapter 22A, the Forest Conservation Law and the Forest Conservation Trees Regulations. The amendments to the Forest Conservation Law and regulations will help the County achieve greater forest planting and forest conservation with a goal of no net loss.