Forest (conservation) Rules 2022 Pdf Download

Early in 1990 Governor Schaeffer created a Task Force to assess the problems and potential of Maryland's trees and forests to promote land stewardship. One recommendation of the Task Force was creation of a forest conservation, protection and reforestation law. The Department of Natural Resources Forest Service and various partners wrote the Forest Conservation Act and Regulations.

The main purpose of the Maryland Forest Conservation Act (Natural Resources Article Section 5-1601 through 5-1613) enacted in 1991 was to minimize the loss of Maryland's forest resources during land development by making the identification and protection of forests and other sensitive areas an integral part of the site planning process. Identification of priority areas prior to development makes their retention possible. Of primary interest are areas adjacent to streams or wetlands, those on steep or erodible soils or those within or adjacent to large contiguous blocks of forest or wildlife corridors.

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Although the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Forest Service administers the FCA, it is implemented on a local level. Gaining approval of the required Forest Conservation Plan (development of more than one acre) may require long term protection of included priority areas or planting/replanting (afforestation or reforestation) a sensitive area off-site.

During the first fifteen years of implementation FCA has been responsible for the review of 199,925 acres of forest on projects scheduled for development. Of those, 120,638 acres were retained, 71,885 acres were cleared and 21,461 acres were planted with new forest. In other words, at least twice as many acres were protected or planted as were cleared.

Any activity requiring an application for a subdivision, grading permit or sediment control permit on areas 40,000 square feet (approximately 1 acre) or greater is subject to the Forest Conservation Act and will require a Forest Conservation Plan prepared by a licensed forester, licensed landscape architect, or other qualified professional UNLESS you are subject to exemptions (determined by the State FCA Coordinator or your local Forest Conservation Program Coordinator.

Forest Stand Delineations (FSD) and Forest Conservation Plans (FCP) required by the Forest Conservation Act must be prepared by a licensed forester, licensed landscape architect, or other qualified professionals.

Individuals who are not licensed foresters or licensed landscape architects may become "Qualified Professionals" capable of conducting forest delineations or writing conservation plans by meeting certain educational and work-experience criteria and completing a department approved forest conservation course. Final approval of Qualified Professional status is determined by the state FCA coordinator upon receipt of your Qualified Professional application and notification of your successful course completion.

Since the Forest Conservation Law first went into effect in 1992, the Planning Department has approved development applications that have permanently protected over 12,500 acres of existing forest and more than 2,500 acres of planted forests within more than 3,500 forest conservation easements across Montgomery County.

If you witness a potential forest conservation easement violation, such as permanent structures, mowing, grading, paving, construction, or tree removal, you can report a violation to our inspection team.

Every project that is required to submit a Forest Conservation Plan for review will have a different forest mitigation requirement, depending on the total tract area, area of existing forest cover, area of forest to be cleared, and land use category.

For example, a development project on a 16-acre property with a land use category of medium-density residential and 8 acres of existing forest that proposes to clear all 8 acres would have a forest mitigation requirement of 9 acres. If the same project were proposed on property with a land use category of agricultural and resource areas, the project would have a forest mitigation requirement of 16 acres.

Any person making application for a subdivision, grading permit or sediment control plan on a tract of 40,000 square feet or more must submit a Forest Stand Delineation (FSD) and a Forest Conservation Plan (FCP). FSD includes the identification of existing forest cover and the environmental features of a proposed development site. It consists of an application available in Adobe Acrobat format, map and summary of specific field data collected.

If there are no suitable areas on the property being developed, an option for developers is to select an offsite location for protection. These easement areas can include both retention of existing forest and planting of new forest. Alternatively, developers can opt to buy into forest mitigation banks, which can involve retention of existing forest or planting of new forest at the bank location.

Category II/Tree Save easements are typically placed over an area that is not forest, but features large specimen trees that are desired to remain. In a Category II easement area, activities such as mowing and clearing of understory are allowed, provided they do not damage or kill the large trees covered by the easement. Similar to Category I easements, activities such as construction, paving and grading of land are prohibited. These easements are extremely important in protecting large trees that may not be inside forest area. The standard Category II legal description is available to view at the County Circuit Court Land Records Department under Liber 13178 Folio 421 [PDF].

Other types of Forest Conservation Easements also protect forest and natural features throughout the county. These easements were created prior to the enactment of the Forest Conservation Law in 1992. As a part of development, conservation easements were often required over sensitive natural land. Unlike standard Category I and II Conservation easements, these easements typically have varying allowances regarding the forest on a property. The language of some of them can be more protective than others, so each easement should be taken at a case-by-case basis. Generally, though, the purpose of each of these easements is to maintain and protect the scenic beauty and natural condition of the land through preservation of forest and other natural features.

Do you want to have forest planted on your property for free? If you own property with an M-NCPPC held Category I forest conservation easement in Montgomery County or if your property meets the criteria below, you can request free reforestation by completing and submitting the Reforest Montgomery Easement Reforestation Application Form.

Montgomery Planning employs a team of inspectors to monitor areas of the county covered by forest conservation easements and forest conservation plans. To ensure that these easements and plans are followed, inspectors conduct site visits and reference aerial imagery combined with mapped conservation easements and forest conservation plans.

If you are developing a small portion of your property, such as building a pool or landscaping, and you need to clear more than 5,000 square feet of forest, you may be subject to Forest Conservation requirements. You can also check our Forest Conservation webpage for more information.

Pinyon and juniper woodlands are the most abundant forest type in the federally managed inventory of mature and old-growth forests, with nine million acres of old-growth pinyon-juniper across BLM and Forest Service lands and an additional 14 million acres of mature pinyon-juniper. This summer, the Forest Service and the BLM will be co-hosting public workshops focused on sustaining resilient pinyon-juniper ecosystems. The workshops are intended to ensure robust public engagement and scientific expertise and knowledge are underpinning the approaches taken to fulfill the Executive Order and other management strategies for ensuring healthy, resilient pinyon and juniper woodlands.

In response to feedback from stakeholder engagement, the report offers recommendations to conduct seed and nursery operations, improve coordination with non-federal partners, leverage opportunities for innovation with the private sector, and build a reforestation workforce with partners like the Conservation Corps.

To develop targets for reforestation on public lands by 2030, USDA and DOI evaluated recent peer-reviewed assessments and datasets conducted on public lands and identified more than 2.3 million acres in need of reforestation. This report also includes an assessment of more than 70 million acres of possible reforestation opportunities with state, tribal and private landowners, providing valuable insight on how existing partnerships and programs could be focused where they are needed most.

With climate change and related stressors causing rapid, variable change on national forests and grasslands, the Forest Service is asking for public input on how the agency should adapt current policies to protect, conserve, and manage national forests and grasslands for climate resilience. This Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for National Forest and Grassland Climate Resilience will be published in the Federal Register and publication will begin a 60-day public comment period. The Forest Service is also consulting with tribes and requesting feedback on current issues and considerations related to relying on the best available science including indigenous knowledge, as well as climate adaptation, mature and old-growth forests, and considerations for social and economic resilience.

The Forest Conservation Act was signed into Maryland law in 1991. It establishes rules for development sites that minimize the loss of existing forests and replenish tree cover. The City of Baltimore has adopted local legislation in compliance with the State law, and enforces the Forest Conservation Program for development occurring within the city limits. e24fc04721