ELLICOTT CITY, MD – Howard County Executive Calvin Ball today joined Maryland Secretary of Natural Resources Joshua Kurtz to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) enhancing collaboration between the County and State’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to pursue shared climate and natural resource goals.
“Our strengthened partnership with DNR aligns with our ambitious, holistic, strategic, and collaborative approach to becoming energy independent, combatting climate change and ensuring the resiliency of our Howard County community and beyond,” said Howard County Executive Calvin Ball. “This innovative collaboration will accelerate progress toward our respective climate and energy independence goals, improving the quality of life for our residents and strengthening the natural habitats on which we all depend.”
In his proposed Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) budget, Ball has included $230,000 in funding to support DNR’s efforts to plant 32,800 trees on roughly 82 acres of state land in Howard County. This project will be the and the largest voluntary planting – of any kind – ever in Howard County. These trees will support the health of both the Patuxent and Patapsco watersheds, which contribute to quality of life and sustain the Chesapeake Bay.
“Howard County has been a vital partner to the Department of Natural Resources, and we look forward to working closely together to pursue our shared environmental goals,” said Maryland Secretary of Natural Resources Joshua Kurtz.
Under the MOU, DNR and Howard County agreed to deepen their partnership in forest conservation, tree canopy expansion, and natural resource management, such as tree planting, invasive species management, and other conservation efforts. Maryland has a state-wide goal of planting five million trees by 2031, which was established in the Tree Solutions Now Act of 2021 and is led by DNR. Howard County’s bold 2023 Climate Forward Climate Action and Resiliency Plan (Climate Forward) includes an ambitious county-wide goal of achieving 50 percent tree canopy by 2030.
When combined with the County’s Department of Recreation & Parks’ Natural Resources Division’s Tree Canopy Program, Turf to Trees Program, Stream ReLeaf Program, volunteer tree plantings and more, the County has planted more than 80,000 trees under Ball’s administration.
The County’s latest report on Climate Forward progress shows a 23 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, compared to 2005 base levels, and details other key advances on climate mitigation and resiliency. Howard County seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 60 percent by 2030 and reach net zero GHG emissions by 2045.
The MOU provides a framework for collaboration in three areas:
Data Sharing: Howard County has developed and is refining a “Plantable Area” map to help identify suitable tree planting locations within the County. This map, along with other environmental data, including water quality metrics, habitat maps, and conservation priority areas, will be a useful collaborative tool for natural resource management.
Tree Planting and Nature-Based Climate Solutions: Beyond tree plantings, the partnership will support invasive species management, of which the County managed 40 projects covering 206 acres in 2024 and also recently launched a Tree Savers volunteer program to combat invasive plant species. Additional cooperation may include ecosystem restoration and conservation, initiatives within Howard County’s Green Infrastructure Network, and other practices that provide environmental benefits.
Public Outreach, Environmental Education, Workforce Development, and Public-Private Partnerships: Collaboration in these areas will advance mutual interests in environmental protection, natural resource conservation, and climate mitigation and adaptation/resiliency.
Howard County and DNR have a history of cooperation in areas such as watershed management, open space acquisition, forestry management, and tree planting. In April 2024, the County partnered with DNR on an ambitious tree planting agenda that will start with a planned Spring 2025 planting of nearly 33,000 native trees across several parcels comprising about 82 acres of state lands in Howard County.
