Four ecological restoration projects in Frederick County get state money

Gabrielle Lewis, The Frederick News-Post, Md.
·3 min read

Aug. 1—The Maryland Department of Natural Resources awarded $22.9 million to multiple ecological restoration projects across the state, including four projects in Frederick County, for fiscal year 2024.

The Frederick County government, the Land and Cultural Preservation Fund, the Western Maryland Resource Conservation and Development Council, and the Maryland Forestry Foundation received grants. Their ecological restoration projects are either partially or entirely in the county.

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources on July 27 awarded funds from the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund to 24 projects throughout Maryland.

The projects were chosen to improve the water quality and habitat of the Chesapeake Bay watershed and build resilience to climate impacts, according to a news release.

"The projects funded with these grants will help reduce nitrogen and phosphorus pollution, improve wildlife habitat, provide recreational opportunities, and make Maryland's communities more resilient to climate change," Maryland Secretary of Natural Resources Josh Kurtz said in the news release.

— The Frederick County government was awarded about $1 million to contribute to its Creebcbk ReLeaf program within the county's Division of Energy and the Environment.

The program aims to increase the total amount of forested area in the county on both private and public properties, according to the county's website.

Linda Williamson, the program manager, said the money will go towards reforesting public and private properties throughout the county and maintenance of reforested areas. She said approximately 172 acres throughout the county will be reforested, though the number hasn't been finalized yet.

Williamson emphasized that the grant from the trust fund will greatly assist the county's stormwater protection by planting more trees.

"The planting of the trees has many, many benefits throughout the county, just for animals, for food forests, for stormwater and cleaning of the air naturally," she said.

— The Land and Cultural Preservation Fund, a nonprofit consisting of four local entities, will use its grant of about $385,000 on its Forest Buffers in Frederick County project. The project's partners are the Daughters of Charity, the town of Emmitsburg, the Frederick County Forestry Board, the Frederick Bird Club and Hood College.

The grant will go towards reforesting 30 acres along Toms Creek, a tributary of the Monocacy River.

— The Maryland Forestry Foundation received about $1.5 million to contribute towards its Healthy Forest, Healthy Waters program in partnership with the Maryland Forest Service and Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay, according to Treasurer Dawn Balinski.

The funds will go toward planting over 230 acres of trees and 7.5 acres of native meadow on private properties across eight Maryland counties, as well as some maintenance after planting.

Balinski said 13 acres in Frederick County are part of the land the grant money is for.

— The Western Maryland Resource Conservation and Development Council based in Hagerstown received about $1.2 million for its Western Maryland Reforestation Project. The project spans across Allegany, Garrett, Washington and Frederick counties.

Josh Smith, the council's executive director, said the reforestation project's partners at the Maryland Forest Service identified 3 sites in Frederick County — about 21 acres in total — to bring into the scope of the project.

"Our kind of mission as a nonprofit is to build and sustain resource conversation, [do] development programs that raise the quality of environmental, but also social and economic development in our region," Smith said. "This really helps us carry out our mission."