What is Maryland's GreenPrint Program?
Today, Maryland has only two million acres of ecologically significant land that has not been consumed by sprawl development. Of these two million acres of "green infrastructure," almost three-quarters are unprotected. Billions of dollars are spent each year to construct or maintain the state's built infrastructure of roads, bridges and utilities that we depend on for modern life. By contrast, the state's green infrastructure, which exists naturally, is under tremendous pressure from development. Left unprotected, the remaining green infrastructure is vulnerable and will be further reduced and fragmented.
Maryland's GreenPrint Program will help protect the ecological vitality found in each region of the state, including forests, parks, greenways, and wetlands, preserving and enhancing it for future generations. By acting now, Maryland can ensure cleaner air and cleaner water for its citizens and safeguard habitat to spare native waterfowl, animals, and plants from extinction.
Maryland's GreenPrint Program signifies a bold new direction in land conservation. The purpose of the program is threefold:
Examples of Maryland's green infrastructure are found throughout the entire state:
Strings of Green Links will form Habitat Highways, natural routes bridging Green Hub to Green Hub. Maryland's Habitat Highways will allow wildlife safe passage through their natural domain; facilitate seed and pollen transport helping plant life thrive across the state; and keep streams and wetlands healthy by protecting adjacent vegetation. Preserving linkages between the remaining large habitat areas will ensure the long term survival and continued diversity of Maryland's natural resources and environment.
How will Maryland's GreenPrint Program Build Upon Our Current Land Conservation Programs?
The GreenPrint Program will build upon existing conservation programs by:
Why should I care about Maryland's GreenPrint?
Developers, private landowners, and others will benefit from having a clear understanding of where the most ecologically valuable lands are located, and where targeted conservation activities will be directed. Citizens interested in increased stewardship activities will know where their efforts are most needed. Land planners and developers can use the green infrastructure maps as a reference in the development of site plans and management objectives.
Local governments will be able to enhance their efforts to provide open space, recreation lands, and natural areas that retain the unique character of their communities and rural landscapes. The GreenPrint Program will complement their efforts to direct growth to specified areas.
Private land trusts will have another tool at their disposal. Conservation groups, and their members, will find that Maryland s GreenPrint Program will give them a greater impact where it means the most – on the ground, in the water, and in the air.
For everyone who lives in or visits Maryland, GreenPrint is a way to preserve our rich quality of life and safeguard, for future generations, Maryland's Chesapeake Bay and the legacy of Maryland's special natural landscapes: the picturesque, rolling mountains of Western Maryland; the forest lands and wooded wetlands of Southern Maryland; the expansive native marshes of our Eastern Shore; and the diverse and rich stream valleys of our Western Shore and Piedmont region. Action is needed now to ensure that our children, our grandchildren, and generations to come, have the same opportunities to enjoy Maryland's outstanding natural resources and high quality of life as we do today.
Saving our diverse and ecologically precious natural resources is the basis for Maryland's GreenPrint Program. GreenPrint will allow the State of Maryland to preserve an extensive, intertwined network of land vital to the long term survival of our native plants and wildlife, and certain industries which rely on a clean, healthy environment and abundant natural resources.
Green Infrastructure
Maryland's green infrastructure has been mapped using sophisticated satellite imaging technology, with the results being reviewed by scientists, local government officials, and conservation groups. The first step identified the heart of our green infrastructure called "Green Hubs." These are typically sweeping areas hundreds of acres in size and are vital to maintaining the state s vibrant and unique ecology. The second step connected Green Hubs with "Green Links" - ribbons of land like stream valleys and mountain ridge lines that function as "Habitat Highways."
GREEN HUBS, GREEN LINKS & THE HABITAT HIGHWAY
As Maryland continues to grow we must prevent the shrinking and fragmentation of undeveloped open space. By fortifying and restoring the green infrastructure, the state can maximize the ecological potential of Maryland's landscape. In Green Hubs, our distinctive wildlife will have access to a full range of habitat enabling animals to flourish amidst vast stretches of protected lands. Green Hubs also reduce the stress placed on our forests, helping to renew woodlands and preventing their collapse into isolated pockets of trees.
Over the past several years, the State of Maryland has enacted several effective land conservation programs. These include the Open Space and Rural Legacy programs, a variety of agricultural preservation efforts, private conservation easement agreements, and regulations that help preserve wetlands and shorelines. As a result, Maryland is known nationally as a leader in land conservation and natural resource protection. While these initiatives proved effective in addressing specific needs related to wetlands, endangered species, recreation, and farmland, they were not designed to protect a comprehensive network of ecologically sensitive lands. Despite our successes, only 26% of the identified green infrastructure is already protected.
Why do these lands need protection by GreenPrint?
Because much of the state's key natural resource land has been lost, Maryland needs to protect as much as possible of what remains. The benefits of the GreenPrint Program include:
In addition to their ecological and economic contributions, these lands provide a sense of place and a unique identity. Natural landscapes make communities more comfortable and appealing and link current generations to their heritage and cultural past.
GreenPrint impacts all Maryland citizens. For some people, like watermen and those who harvest and process timber, it affects their jobs. For others, the green infrastructure provides places for hobbies, recreational activities, and learning opportunities. Our children and teachers can, together, learn the wonders of nature by using the green infrastructure as a living classroom. Nature lovers can enjoy hiking, camping, observing, and photographing all forms of plant and wildlife.
