WASTE WOOD UTILIZATION WORKSHOP

Forest Sustainability Program for Baltimore County, MD

June 28, 2006June 28, 2006

Donald C. Outen, AICPNatural Resource Manager

douten@co.ba.md.us 410-887-4488 x238

Department of Environmental Protection and Resource

Management

Department of Environmental Protection and Resource

Management

• Forest Sustainability Strategy

• Land Preservation Strategy

• Water Quality & Watershed Restoration Program

Baltimore County

Renaissance Redevelopment

Low

Moderate

Medium High

High

Water Quality Protection RankingChesapeake Bay Program’s Resource Lands Assessment

Wallowa Gogebic Baltimore County County County

Land Area (sq. mi.) 3,145 1,112 599

Population (2003) 7,082 17,329 777,184

Population (2000) 7,226 17,370 754,292

2000 Density (sq. mi.) 2.3 15.8 1,260.1

% Forest Cover 52% 80% 34%

% Publicly-owned forest 56% 52% 25%

Forest acres (1000’s) 1,049 570 130

Linking Communities to the Montreal Process Criteria & Indicators - County Pilot Projects

Wallowa County, OR Gogebic County, MI Baltimore County, MD

Montreal Process Criteria:

1. Conservation of Biological Diversity

2. Maintenance of the Productive Capacity of Forest Ecosystems

3. Maintenance of Forest Ecosystem Health and Vitality

4. Conservation and Maintenance of Soil and Water Resources

5. Maintenance of Forest Contribution to Global Carbon Cycles

6. Maintenance and Enhancement of Long-Term Multiple Socio-Economic Benefits to Meet the Needs of Societies

7. Legal, Institutional, and Economic Framework for Forest Conservation and Sustainable Management

Forest Sustainability“meeting the needs of society today without diminishing the

ability of future generations to meet their needs”

The MP Indicators measure forest sustainability at national levels.

http://www.mpci.org/home_e.html

Forest (133k ac)GrassImperviousURDL (adopted 1967)

Inside the Urban-Rural Demarcation Line (URDL)

90% of the Population

33.6% of the Land

16.8% of the Forests

FOREST LOSS• forests cover only 34% of the County (v. pre-settlement ~95%)• 67% of forests on development sites are retained (Forest Conservation Act)• forest lost to development averages 230 acres per year

FRAGMENTATION• > 9,000 patches; mean patch size is 14.6 acres• ~ half < 0.25 acre; total 418 acres or 0.3% of forests• 315 patches > 100 acres; comprise 6.5% of patches and 62% of forests

OWNERSHIP• 75% of forests are privately owned

PARCELIZATION• est. >50,000 owners of forest patches• 32% of patches have 1 owner but total only 4% of forest acres

HABITAT• 13% of forests are “interior” (>500’ from a forest edge)

WATER QUALITY• 52% of 100-foot stream buffer areas are forested• 28% of forest cover is located within 100-foot riparian buffer areas

Baltimore County Forest Resources

MANAGING THIS 240-ACRE FOREST PATCH TO PROTECT THE FOREST AND STREAM

Forest Parcelization

Forest Parcelization

BECOMES A CHALLENGE BECAUSE THERE ARE DOZENS OF OWNERSBECOMES A CHALLENGE BECAUSE THERE ARE DOZENS OF OWNERS

Developing a Forest Sustainability Program

1. Sustainability Issues and Indicators Forum (June 2003)

2. Stakeholder Steering Committee (July 2003)

3. Issues and Indicators Paper and web site (December 2003)

4. Draft Forest Sustainability Strategy (November 2005) – goals, actions and assessment needs for 15 sustainability issues

5. Partnership Memorandum of Understanding for Sustainable Forest Management (November 2005)

6. Strategy Implementation

http://www.co.ba.md.us/Agncies/environment/workgroupUser name: deprm Password: environment

DRAFT

Forest Sustainability Strategy

• 15 Ecological and Economic Sustainability Issues

• 42 Proposed Goals

• 101 Recommended Actions

• 85 Recommended Assessment and Data Analyses

http://www.co.ba.md.us/Agncies/environment/workgroupUser name: deprm Password: environment

1. Proactive resource management v. “benign neglect” or chance.

2. Manage for both ecological and economic sustainability. Use the Montreal Process Criteria and Indicators framework.

3. County-wide management. Assure that “urban” forests and other treed areas not traditionally considered “forest” are included.

4. Address multiple stressors comprehensively.

5. Develop and use sustainability indicators, supported by adequate assessment and monitoring. Work with federal and State agencies on a Forest Health Monitoring program. Goal: “better data, better dialogue,

better decisions.”

6. Favor non-regulatory means, including education, technical assistance, and financial incentives.

7. Institutionalize initiatives and integrate into existing land use and environmental programs.

8. Continue to facilitate participation of parties-at-interest (federal and state agencies, the forest industry, environmental organizations, and citizens) in an open process to implement forest sustainability.

9. Demonstrate leadership by example and make forest sustain-ability a priority for management of County-owned lands.

10.Report progress periodically to the County Council and the public. Maintain program website.

Guiding Principles for Forest Sustainability

http://www.co.ba.md.us/Agncies/environment/workgroupUser name: deprm Password: environment

Ecological Sustainability Issues

• Forest Cover Loss

• Forest Fragmentation

• Effects of Forest Loss on Water Quality and Quantity and Stream Function

• Conservation of Biological Diversity

• Exotic, Invasive Plant and Animal Species Invasion

• Forests in Key Sensitive Areas (Riparian Buffers, Recharge Areas, Reservoir Watersheds)

• Deer Browsing Threats to Forest Regeneration

Economic Sustainability Issues:

• Valuing Forest Ecosystem Services

• Reduction of Greenhouse Gases (Carbon Sequestration Market Mechanisms)

• Landowner Attitudes Toward Forest Management

• Public Education about Forest Science

• Cost and Legal Barriers to Sustainable Forest Management

• Markets for Local Forest Products Utilization

• Timber Management for Sustainable Forests

• Forest Management Plans for Publicly-Owned Forests

Forest Sustainability Strategy

http://www.co.ba.md.us/Agncies/environment/workgroupUser name: deprm Password: environment

Continuing Partnership for Implementing Forest Sustainability

• MOU for Sustainable Forest Management (Nov. 2005)

• Forest Sustainability Strategy

• Roundtable on Sustainable Forests

CORE STRATEGY:

• Retain existing forests to degree possible

• Reforest priority environmental areas (riparian buffers, reservoirs, etc.)

• Promote sustainable forest management by public and private sectors

PRIORITY ACTIONS:

• Incorporate forest sustainability initiatives into regional Reservoir Watershed Management Agreement

• Incorporate forest management as a water quality BMP for regulatory programs (NPDES, TMDLs)

• Continue to implement Forest Sustainability Strategy through new partnerships and operating and capital budget initiatives

• Incorporate forest resource assessments into community plans

• Foster forest education and landowner stewardship

• Encourage inter-agency development and adoption of forest and community sustainability indicators

Implementing Forest Sustainability in Baltimore County

Capital Budget Projects:• Growing Home Campaign • Rural Residential Stewardship Initiative• Forest Health Monitoring (FHM) Network• Urban Forest Assessment (UFORE)• Forest Markets – Carbon, Biomass/Renewable Energy,

Timber and Alternative Forest Products

Urban Tree Canopy Goals Study5E Forum: Forest Strategy Implementation

• Education, Ecology, Economics, Easements, and Env. Indicators actions in 2005 Forest Sustainability Strategy

Roundtable on Sustainable Forests:• County case study & outreach to local governments

American Planning Association: • PAS Report: Planning with Urban Forestry

2006-2007 Work Program