Sustainable Frederick County
Spring 2019
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The Office of Sustainability and Evironmental Resources - From left: Dawn Ashbacher, Jeremy Joiner, Suzanne Cliber, Shannon Moore, Kim Campbell, Don Dorsey, Angelia Miller and Linda Williamson
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Watershed Restoration CIP Update
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Stormwater pond retrofit in the Villages of Urbana
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Efforts to continue to improve Frederick County’s water quality have ramped up over the course of 2 years as the County is in its last year of its
Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Permit (MS4)
. The MS4 Permit is administered by the Maryland Department of the Environment and is a requirement of the Clean Water Act to protect the environment from stormwater impacts. The Permit requires the County to restore 20% of the urban area in the County where water does not absorb into the ground, also known as impervious surfaces (roads, rooftops, driveways, parking lots, etc).
Frederick County has recently retrofitted six stormwater ponds and is anticipating the completion of twelve more by June 2019. Additionally, there are five stormwater facilities to be completed by December 2019. This spring the County will begin construction of the
Point of Rocks
and
Little Hunting Creek Stream Restoration Projects
. Lastly, the County is excited to start construction of its demonstration project at the County’s Extension Services Building located along Montevue Lane. The project involved a variety of stakeholders including
Frederick County’s Master Gardeners
. Stay tuned to hear more about these exciting projects!
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Earth Hour 2019 - Turning Lights Off Around the World
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Earth Hour
will be celebrated on
March 30, 2019!
This event is held annually and encourages individuals, communities, and businesses to turn off non-essential electric lights for one hour, from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., as a symbol of commitment to the planet.
Earth Hou
r started as a lights out event in Sydney, Austrialia in 2007, and is now the world's largest grassroot movement inspiring millions to take action for our planet.
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Sustainability and Environmental Resources welcomed a new Sustainability Program Manager,
Dawn Ashbacher,
to our team this past November! Dawn most recently served as the Interim Public Works Director in Purcellville, VA, and the Town Manager of Sykesville, MD. She has a masters in public administration and over 15 years of program management experience in local government, non-profits, and education.
Dawn’s duties with OSER include managing grant programs, like the
PowerSaver Retrofits
residential program; staffing the Sustainability Commission; coordinating County certification through the LEED for Communities (formerly STAR Communities) program; and helping the County to update its
comprehensive energy plan
to reduce the use of energy and increase energy efficiency in government operations. In her spare time, Dawn likes to walk, bike, and hang out with her family.
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Welcome Lindsey!
Intern
Lindsey Stanley
joined the OSER team in January 2019. Lindsey is a senior at
Hood College
and will be graduating in May 2019 with a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science and Policy and a minor in Biology. After completing her internship towards the end of April, Lindsey plans to begin looking into graduate school options or to find a full time position within the environmental field
.
Best Wishes, Vanessa!
OSER bids a fond farewell to intern
Vanessa Moreno.
.
Vanessa recently graduated from the
University of Maryland
with a degree in geographical sciences and a minor in sustainability. While working with our
team, Vanessa had the opportunity to work with GIS which she hopes to apply to a future career. She would like to attend graduate school and obtain a job in
urban/community planning
to plan sustainable cities and communities while taking care of our environment for future generations. Thank you for all your efforts, Vanessa!
Pictured at top: Lindsey Stanley
Pictured at bottom: Vanessa Moreno
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Maryland Energy Administration Wins Award
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The program that funds
Frederick County’s Power Saver Retrofits program
, The EmPOWER Clean Energy Communities Low-to-Moderate Income (LMI) Grant Program, is attracting national attention. This Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) program pays for
residential energy efficiency upgrades that benefit Frederick County residents
with low-to-moderate incomes. In January, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) recognized the LMI program as an exemplary program in the Social Equity category.
The MEA LMI Program
creates local jobs, leverages additional funding sources, and has helped to grow the network of nonprofit and local government providers of assistance to the LMI populace. Equally important, the LMI program generates cost-effective energy savings and fosters healthier and safer living spaces. ACEEE is a nonprofit organization that acts as a catalyst to advance energy efficiency policies, programs, technologies, investments, and behaviors.
For more information about the
Power Saver Retrofits program
, contact
Dawn Ashbacher
by email
or by phone at 301-600-6864.
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8th Annual Green Homes Challenge Recognition Event
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On
March 28, 2019
,
Frederick County Executive
Jan H. Gardner,
Frederick County officials, and OSER staff will recognize our amazing
Green Homes Challenge
Certified Households, at the
8th Annual Green Homes Challenge Recognition Event
. Winners of the
2019 Frederick County Sustainability Awards
will also be presented their awards at the event. These award winners are selected by the Frederick County Sustainability Commission
for outstanding contributions to sustainability by individuals and organizations.
The Green Homes Challenge guides, rewards, and recognizes households for saving energy, adopting environmentally-friendly lifestyle practices, and using renewable energy. Since Frederick County
launched its
Green Homes Challenge
in January 2011, more than 850 households have met one or more of the three Green Homes Challenges:
B
e a Power Saver, Be a Green Leader, or Be a Renewable Star.
If you are interesting in taking the Challenge, click
here
to get started!
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Monocacy and Catoctin Watershed Alliance
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The
Monocacy and Catoctin Watershed Alliance
held its quarterly meeting on January 30, 2019 at Fountain Rock Nature Center. Guest speaker
Joe Richardson, owner of Bar-T Mountainside
, talked about the restoration of the North Branch of Bennett Creek, which runs through Mountainside’s farm campus for summer camps, after-school programs, field trips, and retreats. The restoration will restore stream bank stability, increase floodplain function and prevent upland stormwater and nutrient impacts. The project will include removing legacy sediments from the floodplain, restoring the stream channel, and improving surrounding habitats to capture and process nutrients and sediment from upstream areas. Click
here
to see a video about the project.
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Guest speaker Joe Richardson speaks to MCWA members at Fountain Rock Nature Center
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LEED for Communities: Recognizing Frederick County's Forward Thinking Sustainability Efforts
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Frederick County is pursuing certification as a
LEED Community.
Many may be familiar with LEED certification for buildings; this is a similar certification for localities.
LEED for Communities is a way to recognize the commitment the County has toward sustainability, to show the impact of these efforts and how they can benefit the County economically, to measure performance, and
to benchmark our performance
with other jurisdictions. To find out more about LEED Certification, click
here.
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Green Business - Bimbo Bakeries
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Congratulations to
Bimbo Bakeries USA
on the opening of their new
anaerobic biogas digester
. T
he digester treats wastewater from the bakery and will eventually be used to turn the biogas from the system into renewable energy.
Frederick County Government partnered with Bimbo to treat their industrial effluent prior to this plant’s operation. Bimbo Bakeries USA, a baker of items like english muffins, has made many commitments to sustainability, including packaging reduction, 100% windpower for electricity in US operations by 2020, Energy Star partner of the year, and signing on to the Paris Climate Agreement.
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OSER Spring Events 2019 - Where We Will Be!
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Spring weekends are for getting out and enjoying the weather! Below is a list of spring events happening all around the County that we will be participating in. Stop by and see us!
FCBIA Home Show
, Frederick Fairgrounds, Saturday, 3/16/19 - 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. and Sunday, 3/17/19 - 10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
4/27/19 - 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Bark in the Park
, Saturday, 5/11/19, 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m., Ballenger Creek Park, Frederick
Sunday, 6/2/19 - 9:00 a.m - 5:00 p.m.
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To susbscribe to OSER News Alerts click
here
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