Program Description

  Soil Conservation

This program is comprised of staff and other resources from Federal, State, and local agricultural agencies. It provides technical and outreach educational assistance to farmers/rural landowners for implementing best management and conservation practices. The Montgomery Soil Conservation District (MSCD) assists the County to achieve the nationally mandated, State-assigned, Rural MS4 Permit - Chesapeake Bay Nutrient Diet - Watershed Implementation Program (WIP-III) goals. Failure to achieve the WIP-III goals will likely result in the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) instituting the backstop measure which will negatively impact the County and the agricultural community by denying all permits moving forward and harming the County's rural economy/infrastructure with increased regulatory requirements. In addition, the district provides technical assistance to the County with technical reviews and regulatory requirements associated with county stormwater management facility retrofit projects associated with the County's MS4 permit requirements regulated by the EPA and State of Maryland.