Sustainability and Maryland’s Public Lands
“Leading by Example”

Over the past one hundred years, Maryland’s 450,000 acre public estate has been systematically acquired, protected and managed for myriad of purposes including wildlife species and habitat, water quality, forest products, wilderness values, recreation, etc. Held and managed in the public trust by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) these lands have been somewhat “healed” from past land and resource abuses such as “high grade” logging, soil erosion caused by poor agricultural practices, grazing and wild fire. “Wonderful” you might say - “But what is DNR doing for my public lands today, or tomorrow, or my children’s tomorrow?”

DNR has come to realize that “just holding on” or “maintaining the status quo” when it comes to the management of the public lands system will not be enough to sustain the quality, quantity and integrity of the lands, resources, facilities and uses that we currently have, into the future. The next, and very critical, steps are to create a closed system of resource availability, production, distribution and waste and then change the basic processes used and the way we do business to achieve that goal. That is the essence of sustainability! Using its lands, facilities and operations, DNR has a tremendous opportunity to explore, test and demonstrate concrete examples of how Maryland can fully integrate and balance economic, ecological and social needs now and into the future. We intend to lead the State in understanding and implementing the ways that organizations and individuals can live, work and play sustainably.

Framework For A Sustainable Public Lands System

A guidance paper, “Framework For A Sustainable Public Lands System,” is currently being developed for use by land managers within DNR, providing a “blueprint” on how they can conduct system-wide or facility specific analyses of lands under their stewardship responsibility. Self-conducted audits will be used to create 3, 5 and 10 year plans for land managing agencies and every facility throughout the State to meet established principles of sustainability. It is expected that this framework will be adopted in the spring of 2008 with a system-wide management plans completed during the summer. Individual facility plans for each park, forest, wildlife management area and other DNR facilities will be phased in during the next year.

Opportunities For DNR Lands And Resources:

  • Sustainable forest management system-wide
  • Biodiversity habitat conservation
  • Wetland establishment
  • Riparian buffer creation
  • Restore historic hydrologic function (streams)
  • Lake management (eutrophication, vegetation management)
  • Recreational use conflict resolution
  • Wildlife corridor development
  • Invasive species removal
  • Clear and consistent policy on appropriate uses of public land
  • Environmental justice considerations
  • Contributions to local and regional economy

Opportunities On DNR Facilities:

  • Life-cycle cost analyses
  • Energy auditing
  • Remove unnecessary impervious surfaces, i.e. parking lots
  • Bio-retention practices
  • Alternative energy generation on-site
  • Demonstrations and interpretive programming

Opportunities Within DNR Operations:

  • Energy conservation (HVAC, vehicles, electric)
  • Strive for carbon neutrality (conservation, mitigation offsets, etc.)
  • Water conservation
  • Zero waste stream (reduction, reuse, recycling)
  • Green product procurement and use (natural/organic/non-toxic/recyclable)
  • Utilize locally produced and/or fair trade items
  • Personal commitment of employees to a sustainable lifestyle
  • Alternative visitor transportation mechanisms (local mass transit, etc.)
  • Encourage non-motorized transit, ride-sharing or telecommuting, etc. for employees
  • Sustainability Principles information/education/demonstration for the public

Resources:

Chesapeake Bay Health Information Maryland's Green Website

Sustainability Tip

Install a rain garden or rain barrel to catch rainwater. Stormwater rushing off of roofs and lawns carries pollution directly into streams and the Bay. Rain gardens and rain barrels slow the water down and keep pollution out of our waters. Click here for other helpful information.

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