Sugarloaf Citizens Association Working For You
The day-to-day mission of Sugarloaf Citizens Association is to preserve a rural agricultural tradition in upper Montgomery County, and to protect the viability of the Agricultural Reserve.
How do we do this? Our volunteer-citizen organization monitors development proposals. We oppose them if they threaten the health of our community, or open the Ag Reserve to new development.
We follow activities at the Montgomery County Council, Maryland National Park and Planning Commission, and legislation before state and local government.
When development interests apply for a permit that would open the Agricultural Reserve to industrial expansion, or endanger the rural density zone, we testify on behalf of the community.
We testify at special exception hearings, county council hearings, park and planning hearings and at the Council of Governments. And sometimes we legally intervene to stop a permit.
Here is an overview of our activities on your behalf over the last couple of years:
Mirant Power Plant expansion: This multi-national corporation applied for a permit to double the size of its Dickerson electric generating facility.
Sugarloaf intervened in this permit case because of environmental and community health risks, as well as the adverse impacts of industrial expansion on the Ag reserve.
The old coal burning plant spews some of the worst pollution in all of Montgomery County. Through our intervention in this case, Sugarloaf was successful in getting Mirant to commit to installing Nox reduction equipment on all three coal burning units. Since EPA has relaxed its rules on old coal plants, Sugarloaf ‘s legal intervention was the sole reason Mirant agreed to make this extra multi-million dollar expenditure. We also required additional pollution monitoring, increased safety measures, and a traffic plan during the construction phase.
Sugarloaf also secured funding to start an environmental foundation to make grants to school teachers to carry out environmental action (ie:tree plantings)and environmental education projects.
4 Streams Golf Course: Sugarloaf intervened with Park and Planning to prevent a local golf course from adding hotel type overnight lodging, which was a major departure from long standing zoning rules for lodging in the Ag Reserve.
Neutron Products: In conjunction with the Dickerson Civic Association, Sugarloaf has intervened with state and federal officials, to attempt to close down a local company notorious for its violations of regulations related to the processing of nuclear materials. While the reprocessing of Colbalt 60 has been halted by the state, other parts of the company are still in operation, and their toxic chemical cleanup awaits state enforcement. We continue to monitor their operations.
Techway Bridge: Working in conjunction with Solutions not Sprawl, Sugarloaf has been working to stop the possible construction of a bridge and outer beltway connecting Maryland and Virginia. Several of the proposed bridge alignments run through the center of the Ag Reserve.
Sugarloaf has intervened in numerous Park and Planning applications to prevent the development of facilities in the Agricultural Reserve that violate its zoning and would open the door for sprawl development. These include waste management facilities as well as other proposals that would undo the rural density zone.
Several of Sugarloaf’s Board members serve on the Facilities Implementation Group (FIG). They have monitored solid waste at the incinerator, air and water quality impacts of the incinerator, as well as community health impacts of the solid waste operations. The FIG also oversees: tree planting, traffic analysis, and groundwater testing as they relate to the facilities in Dickerson.
Sugarloaf Citizens Association will continue to work on your behalf, protecting our remaining open spaces in the Agricultural Reserve, and our agricultural tradition for future generations!