Jim Brown June 10 Letter to County Council on Forest Conservation
Dear Council Members:
I am writing as President of the Sugarloaf Citizens Association and on behalf of all my board members in opposition to 29-03 the Forest Conservation Exemption for Equestrian Facilities. We are most concerned that the proposed exemptions will seriously and negatively impact water quality in Montgomery County.
Key environmental components missing from the bill are:
No requirement for a forest conservation plan that would include replanting to compensate for deforestation
No requirement for a baseline survey
No requirement for monitoring the environmental impact by the County to determine the effectiveness of the plan.
Agriculture which enjoys broad exemptions from forest conservation is supposed to use best management practices and it is clear there are no provisions for best practices for equine in 29-03.
For these and many other reasons please vote against 29-03.
Jim Brown
Sugarloaf President
Board Members: Tina Brown, Matt McMillian, Jane Hunter, Elle Gordon, Tom Procter, George Miller, Anne Sturn, Jay Cinque, Dolores Milmoe, Michael Gresalfi, Eric Cronquist, Claire Kirby