Advocates are mobilizing statewide to defend Program Open Space (POS) and the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays 2010 Trust Fund (Trust Fund) from the devastating cuts proposed by Maryland’s Department of Legislative Services (DLS). Testifying at General Assembly budget hearings this week, Secretary Josh Kurtz highlighted just how critical these programs are, calling them “our two most important funds at the Department of Natural Resources (DNR)” to meet state goals of conserving land, improving water quality, protecting and restoring habitats, and increasing climate resiliency as mandated by the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement.  He was not alone. Conservation advocates, including ESLC, testified in Annapolis at every budget hearing possible in recent weeks to hammer home the message that conservation is non-negotiable in Maryland given our diverse ecosystems, our economic, cultural, and institutional reliance on natural resources, and our vulnerability to climate change.

As one of the largest private land trusts in Maryland, ESLC continues to leverage our various leadership roles in multiple statewide coalitions and collaborations in order to defend conservation funding. ESLC Director of Land Use and Policy, Owen Bailey, testified at two Senate Budget and Taxation Subcommittees, testified in the House Appropriations Subcommittee for the Capital Budget, and provided written testimony at three other key committees.  With the budget hearings now over, ESLC has turned its attention to mobilizing a diverse coalition of stakeholders from across the state to protest DLS budget recommendations. More than 80 representatives from the conservation, restoration, and agricultural communities have now united in a coordinated campaign to save these critical programs through direct communication with legislators, committee members, and the public. It’s critical that legislators and committee members understand: conservation of our land and water is not discretionary. It is not expendable. It is not a low priority.

Conservation also cannot “wait until later.” DLS’s proposal to reallocate ALL funding from Program Open Space for the next four years will have long-term implications and could easily result in complete abandonment of state-sponsored conservation efforts. The alarming long-term implications of this maneuver could devastate our waterways, landscapes, and communities irreparably. The breadth of land conservation funded by Program Open Space funds is perhaps lost on legislators since a multitude of different programs are encompassed under one umbrella. But the multitude is only evidence of grave exigency.

The projects supported by Program Open Space and the Trust Fund touch every corner of the state, from the preservation of agricultural lands, important habitats, and cultural treasures to community playgrounds, trails, and state parks. These programs produce real, on-the-ground benefits that impact every constituent, from Baltimore City to Smith Island.

Even now Program Open Space programs can’t meet demand with the funds they’ve been allocated. Heritage Areas are only able to fund a third of all requests. Two billion dollars is still needed to catch up with public park upgrades. And the two major farmland preservation programs that fall under Program Open Space, Rural Legacy and MALPF, fall desperately short for farmers. Less than a fifth of all Rural Legacy requests are granted every year. Several farmers on ESLC’s list alone have been waiting more than 12 years and still have not made their way up the list.

All Marylanders benefit tremendously from Program Open Space programs. But when conservation programs in our state are jeopardized, rural communities are ruined. The mountains and the shores feel it first. These communities are dependent on natural resources like prime farmland, forests, water, and wildlife for their livelihoods. Agriculture, forestry, fishing, and tourism activities in rural Maryland are key components of our economy and cultural fabric.

Wholesale abandonment of key conservation efforts not only undermines the traditional economies that have kept rural enclaves afloat for centuries but also jeopardizes a conservation economy that has emerged from Maryland leaders’ commitments. Conservation projects and environmental practices that are funded by Program Open Space and the Trust Fund create hundreds of thousands of jobs and generate more than 4 billion dollars of economic activity on Maryland’s Eastern Shore alone.

The stakes for Maryland’s conservation efforts have never been higher. Defunding Program Open Space threatens the state’s environmental health and the economic stability of its rural communities. By investing in conservation, we protect Maryland’s natural heritage and foster a sustainable future. The time to act is now to ensure the lands, waters, and wildlife that define the state’s character are preserved and cherished.

Join our campaign and advocate for Maryland conservation funding today.