Gunpowder Valley Conservancy

From the President — Why Land Preservation?

Many of us have been pursuing land preservation as a concept but have not put it into context other than to say that “it’s good”. Well, land preservation is actually a part of the larger matter of planned development. The continued unplanned development in Maryland and elsewhere has brought us to a point where our children face a crushing financial burden simply to own a home. When my mother bought a split level rancher in 1962, it cost $16,000.00 What does it cost today? Over $300,000 is a good bet. Are our children earning 19 times what an average person earned in 1962? The minimum wage worker would need to be making about $98,900.00 for that to be true!!

Whence global warming, there are steps that can be taken now without waiting for salvation by technology. One of these solutions is planned development. Autos may pollute but the amount of pollution is related to the miles driven. If land is preserved and development directed to higher density developments, our children can acquire housing without the enormous cost of the present suburban/rural sized parcel of land. The population of Maryland has increased by 1.4 million in thirty years. As the government grows, Maryland continues to increase in population. Consider just the Military Base Realignment changes that will add approximately 50,000 jobs to Maryland. It just keeps on going. Land preservation will not only save the natural beauty that we treasure. It will eventually force planned development as a result of the shortage of land for traditional suburban lots.

We are not an end in ourselves. We are part of the larger evolution of society in the 21st century. The Boston-Washington corridor will not go away. Population will increase. How the increase is handled is the question. Remember another bit of the 60’s – If you are not part of the solution; you are part of the problem. Keep up the effort.

Cornelius J. Carmody

Local Forests Need Helping Hand

Baltimore County has been taking a close look at forest health and new challenges in forest management. For starters, some good news: The amount of forested land has increased from 114,244 acres in 1914 to 131,046 acres in 1997. That is qualified good news, as the entire county (and state) was once entirely forested, and remaining forests today have to withstand many assaults associated with heavily developed portions of watersheds.

One of the most pressing challenges today is forest management. According to the Baltimore County Department of Environmental Protection and Resource Management (DEPRM), 75% of forest land in the county is under private ownership. Approximately 50,000 property owners now have a piece of forest land ranging in size from a few acres to dozens of acres. While there are many threats to a healthy forest such as deer, invasive plants, and insect infestations, there is little in the way of comprehensive forest management due to the fragmented ownership. DEPRM hopes to improve the situation by offering management guidance and by providing incentives to reforest targeted areas, particularly stream corridors.

The department has initiated a Growing Home Campaign where over 25 local garden centers have partnered with the county to provide a $10 coupon towards the purchase of a tree. In addition, DEPRM has launched a Rural Residential Stewardship program aimed at reforestation on privately owned lots of three acres or more in size. An analysis of large lot residential developments showed many acres of unused open land being regularly mowed by owners. In many places this practice has created gaps in forest cover and left stream banks barren of vegetation needed to filter water draining into the water course. Reforesting these areas would improve overall watershed health and save the homeowner time and money spent on mowing, not to mention providing scenic view, additional shade and increase wildlife habitats.

Oaks Struggle to Hold Ground

DEPRM has also recently contracted with professional foresters to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the forest in the county-owned Oregon Ridge Park. The park contains 1,043 acres and is largely forested. The predominant species in the forest is oak. This is a fortunate circumstance, as ecologists have recently determined that oak trees are superior to other native species in their ability to trap nutrients and subsequently improve water quality.

The study, conducted by Len Wrabel of Mar-Len Environmental Services and Mark Twery of the USDA Forest Service, found several major stressors on the forest. These stressors have set a course that could eventually change the forest structure from an oak forest to a red maple forest. Gypsy moths, deer, and invasive plants are the main culprits. Without rapid and comprehensive solutions to these problems, the mighty oak will fail to reproduce. Instead, they will be stunted by the shady atmosphere produced by the understory of red maples now thriving in the current environment. This is not a natural progression, but one fostered by multiple symptoms stemming from rapid growth, fragmentation, and increased forest edge conditions. Aggressive measures are needed to save the oak. Visitors using the trails in the park will notice many dead trees marked for removal. These large trees were victims of the gypsy moth and are an indication of the future fate of oak trees in Oregon Ridge.

Forests provide a wealth of ecosystem services including cleaning the air and water. The most basic needs for subsistence of life are provided by healthy forests. They cannot be taken for granted. Baltimore County forests need attention and action if they are to continue providing critical services and products. Do the forest a favor: support initiatives to expand forest cover, improve management of forested lands, and protect forests from major threats.

Loch Raven Cleanup: Volunteers Pick Up Less Trash!

There was widespread dismay with the amount of trash collected in last year’s Loch Raven Cleanup. The number of trash bags filled was way down in comparison to years past. Many volunteers expressed their chagrin at their inability to meet past accomplishments. But it was through no fault of their own, and given the number of volunteers who had already participated, these disappointing results were due in no small part to their own efforts.

Yes, we are having an impact on our watershed! Our continued efforts have resulted in a much cleaner Loch Raven. Filling a bag with trash has become much harder than in the past. Our first year, we collected over 100 discarded tires, last year it was 5!

Impressive as our efforts and accomplishments have been, the trashing of our watershed continues. Volunteers are still needed to help assure that our woods, streams and reservoirs remain as clean as they can be. The Loch Raven Cleanup will only remain a success for as long as volunteers care enough to come out for an afternoon of work, community service and fun. It is a wonderful opportunity to get out into the watershed, hike its trails, and leave Loch Raven a cleaner, even more beautiful part of our County. If you are interested in acting as a site leader or van driver, or to help register volunteers, please contact Con Manning (telephone 410 667-0641, or email conmanning@ comcast.net. Other volunteers can simply arrive at Warren Elementary School where they can register, be assigned a site to clean, and travel to the site with their team leaders. The cleanup begins at Warren (600 Bosley Road, Cockeysville 21030) at 12:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 14th and will continue until 3:00 p.m. For more info contact Con Manning at 410 667-0641 or conmanning@comcast.net.

Preserving Long Island Farm

Long Island Farm is a rare architectural specimen. It numbers among the two dozen survivors of the 1,500 homes recorded on the 1798 Tax List.

The Friends of Long Island Farm, with the help of the Gunpowder Valley Conservancy (GVC), has made much progress this year in recording the architecture and history of Long Island Farm. We have already completed and submitted to Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) three hours of oral history from the neighbors, tenants and workers of Long Island Farm. Another four hours of recordings dealing with the Risteau/Jenifer family have been completed and are in the final stages of transcribing. These should be finished in a week or two. This will conclude the formal oral history recordings for the farm. Informal history recordings will continue whenever new information is available. If you would like to share your memories of the farm or of Cromwell Valley please let us know. Thanks to a Preservation Maryland grant and funds from the GVC the architect has finished two-thirds of the Historical Structures Report (HSR) on Long Island house. The final one-third is due soon. This should give us a firm basis for future restoration when funds become available. We have applied to MHT for additional grant money to complete a Historical Structures Report on all of the outbuildings. Hopefully, we will get good news from them in September. Baltimore County Historical Trust has reviewed our grant application for funding some of the HSR expenses and we hope to soon get a positive response from them too.

Our Archives project, under the direction of Anne M. Welsh, has wrapped up things for this year. We scanned and digitally stored over 325 historic photos and about 100 historic documents and letters belonging to the Jenifer family. The CDs containing these images will be stored with various historic organizations in Maryland, including MHT, while many of the originals will be sent to the Maryland State Archives to be added to the existing Lillian Jenifer collection in the Hall of Records. We have applied to MHT for additional funding to continue this important archiving project into next year. There is still much work yet to be done in this area. Volunteers to help archive the historical data are always welcome.

We have not heard much from the State recently concerning the status of the conservation easement on the land. We are still hopeful that the Maryland Environmental Trust will accept the easement and Program Open Space will still have the funds to implement it. It is most important that the land be conserved and not sold off for modern housing development.

YOUR HELP IS DESPERATELY NEEDED

The next phase of our Strategic Plan, forming a Support Group to direct and manage the programs and activities at the Farm, seems to be lagging behind schedule. In a January, ‘07 meeting with the historic preservation community it was agreed that a feasibility study was our next essential step to forming this group. Volunteers to research and direct the feasibility study are needed. Unless we find people to help us do the study and organize the Support Group the process of preserving Long Island Farm cannot progress much farther. Won’t you please give us a few hours of your time? To offer suggestions and/or to volunteer some of your time and talents please contact: Jim Kelly at 410-825-1522 or oakfinancial@comcast.net Thank you.

A New Person at the GVC

The Board of Directors of the Gunpowder Valley Conservancy are pleased to announce that Karen Stupski will be working with the GVC to expand our restoration and education programs. She will be working with Baltimore County in furthering their Small Watershed Action Plan program, initiating a stream watch program, working with community groups to increase citizen participation in conservation practices and increasing the reforestation areas around the Gunpowder Watershed.

Karen holds degrees from Harvard and Johns Hopkins where she received her doctorate in the History of Science, Medicine and Technology in 2002. She is an instructor of History at Penn State’s York Campus, and is the Coordinator of the internship program and workshops at Heathcote Community in Freeland, Maryland. She also teaches permaculture at Heathcote and was previously the project supervisor of the B’more Green program at Civic Works in Baltimore City. Her list of accomplishments and experiences are too numerous to mention, but she has been a legislative consultant, organic farmer, and taught environmental studies at Johns Hopkins. She also comes with extensive experience with non-profits as a volunteer, board member and staff person. We all welcome Karen and look forward to working with her and know that her enthusiasm for environmental concerns and extensive experience will help move our mission forward.

NCP Gives Local Land Trusts A Boost

The  Gunpowder Valley Conservancy and three other land trusts were each presented   with a  $7,700 contribution in a ceremony on May 8. The funds came from the proceeds of  a   fundraiser  organized for the land trusts by North County Preservation, Inc. (NCP). NCP  Vice   President  Alice Chalmers presented the grant to GVC Board Member Mac McAvoy, along with   County Executive Jim Smith and County  Councilman Bryan McIntire.

 

The first  endeavor of its kind in Baltimore   County was a huge success  with a sold out   crowd of over  250 residents attending the festivities at the Manor Tavern on March 31. The   four land  trusts that were recipients of the contributions are locally-run organizations  that   specialize  in securing easements on targeted properties in northern Baltimore County.  Like   most local  land trusts, the Gunpowder Valley Conservancy, Land Preservation Trust, Manor   Conservancy,  and Long Green Valley Conservancy operate on lean budgets and rely on volunteer   boards and,  so the contribution provided by this fundraiser is a major help to these   groups.

 

In addition  to securing and monitoring conservation easements within the Gunpowder  watershed,   the  Gunpowder Valley Conservancy also conducts a number of stream buffer tree  plantings   each year,  coordinates trail maintenance days and stream clean-ups, and takes on a variety   of projects  that involve preservation of historical sites and features. The funding from   NCP will go  towards these core activities.

 

“We are  delighted with this unexpected show of support from the community and grateful  to   North  County Preservation, Four Corners Wine and Spirits, and the Manor Tavern for  making   the event  possible,” said GVC President Neil Carmody. “It gave local land trusts an  opportunity   to display  their work and motivate residents to support land preservation by considering   an easement  option and/or by joining a local conservancy. It also raised money that will be   put to good  use by each of the organizations.”