2020 - 2025 Forest Action Plan Part II: Strategy ___________________________________________________________________________________ The Mission of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources The mission of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is to lead Maryland in securing a sustainable future for our environment, society, and economy by preserving, protecting, restoring, and enhancing the State’s natural resources. DNR is the state agency responsible for providing natural and living resources‐related services to citizens and visitors. DNR manages more than 467,000 acres of public lands and 17,000 miles of waterways, along with Maryland's forests, fisheries, and wildlife for maximum environmental, economic and quality of life benefits. A national leader in land conservation, DNR‐managed parks and natural, historic, and cultural resources attract 14.5 million visitors annually. DNR is the lead agency in Maryland's effort to restore the Chesapeake Bay, the state's number one environmental priority. Learn more at www.dnr.maryland.gov. The Mission of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Forest Service The Forest Service mission is to restore, manage, and protect Maryland’s trees, forests and forested ecosystems to sustain our natural resources and connect people to the land. Maryland Department of Natural Resources Tawes State Office Building 580 Taylor Avenue Annapolis, MD 21401 MD DNR Forest Service Phone 410‐260‐8531, http://www.dnr.maryland.gov/forests Larry Hogan, Governor Boyd K. Rutherford, Lt. Governor Jeannie Haddaway-Riccio, Secretary Philip R. Hager, Assistant Secretary Kenneth Jolly, Acting Director/State Forester December 2020 This assessment was funded in part by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service and by the National Association of State Foresters (NASF) The facilities and services of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources are available to all without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin or physical or mental disability. This document is available in alternative format upon request. ii Table of Contents Forest Strategy Executive Summary 1 Introduction 4 Strategy 6 Findings: Maryland Assessment 2020 6 Socioeconomic setting: 8 Maryland Goal I. Grow Forests, Habitats, Markets, and Jobs 10 Objective I.A. Keep Forests as Forests 10 Objective I.B. Manage for Resilient Forest Landscapes, Habitats, and Partnerships 15 Objective I.C. Invest in Forest Management for a Renewable Rural Economy 19 Objective I.D. Demonstrate Sustainable Forest Management on Public Lands 22 Maryland Goal II. Manage Forest Health and Fire 25 Objective II.A. Provide Emergency Response to natural resource threats. 25 Objective II.B. Develop approaches to reduce threats from long-term stressors to forests. 27 Maryland Goal III. Provide Clean Water 31 Objective III.A. Revitalize the Chesapeake Bay and other priority waters 32 Objective III.B. Manage Forests for High-Quality Drinking Water 34 Objective III.C. Advance use of forest harvesting best management practices (BMPs). 34 Maryland Goal IV. Create Healthy, Livable Communities with Trees and Forests 36 Objective IV.A. Connect people to trees and forests for healthy lifestyles. 36 Objective IV.B. Support Livable Green Communities 37 Objective IV.C. Improve health and survival of urban forests. 39 Maryland Goal V. Respond to Climate Change 40 Objective V.A. Plant and Care for Trees and Forests to Mitigate for Climate Change and Natural Hazards Impacts 40 Objective V.B. Innovate forest management for climate-adapted future forests. 42 Objective V.C. Diversify forests and develop markets to optimize carbon sequestration and long-term carbon storage. 43 Timeline and Funding 45 Partner and Stakeholder Involvement 47 Stakeholders and Review Process for the Action Plan: 49 Coordination with other Resource Management Plans 51 Multi-State Issues 53 Measures for Tracking Progress 55 Appendix A: Glossary 56 iii Appendix B: Summary of Recommendations from the February 2015 Report, Maryland’s Forest Resources in a Dynamic Environment: Assessing the Future Confidence and Sustainability of Maryland’s Forest Industry 65 Appendix C: Maryland Forest Service Funding Trends 67 Appendix D: Tree and Forest Canopy Cover in Maryland by Jurisdiction 69 Appendix E. Constant Contact Survey Results from Harry R. Hughes Center for AgroEcology 70 Appendix F. Forest Legacy Program Assessment of Need 81 iv Forest Strategy Executive Summary The first goal of the 2020 Maryland Forest Action Plan Strategy is to “Grow forests, habitats, markets, and jobs.” This is reinforced and refined by an additional four goals to maximize public benefits over the long term: Manage forest health and fire, provide clean water, create healthy, livable communities, and respond to climate change. The 2020 strategy remains based on the seven principles of sustainable forestry as defined in the international Montreal Process: biodiversity, forest productivity, ecosystem health, soil and water health, global carbon, socio-economic support, and legal/institutional frameworks. Maryland’s Forest Assessment characterized a growing and maturing forest land base, a renewable natural resource that supports considerable biological diversity, the potential expansion of saw timber and other durable wood products, net gains in carbon sequestration, and protection of water quality. Maryland forests have a wide diversity of species, hardwood and pine from coasts to mountains, but less diversity in ages, particularly very old and very young. Recent inventory data in Maryland showed increasing natural mortality on forestland overall, although not on timberland, where harvesting can create healthy densities of trees that can withstand drought, disease, or pests. Forest growth outpaced losses from mortality and harvest by twice the volume. Development and fragmentation are considered the greatest threat to our woodlands and their benefits. Forest health challenges include new pests, diseases, and exotic invasive plants, often associated with the ecological changes of a populated landscape: loss of historic low-intensity wildfire, loss of top predators for wildlife, more fragmented forests, and the addition of invasive species. Maryland is an urbanized state, with over 6 million people on 6.2 million acres, that also supports a multi-billion dollar forest products industry, diverse wildlife habitat, and outdoor recreation. Priorities for 2021 to 2025: Grow forests, habitats, markets, and jobs: Core commitments in the Strategy are for sustainably managed forests, both public and private, and maintaining a skilled logging workforce to ensure high-quality harvests. State Forest Managers lead dual third-party-verified certification, demonstrating and innovating forest practices that contribute to the local economy and nature-based recreation, while protecting ecologically important areas. The expansive public reserves with goals for very mature forests and old-growth make up about 10% of forests statewide. Most forests are privately owned, so growing certification on private lands, where appropriate, through programs such as the Maryland Tree Farm is a priority, calling for more outreach such as reaching new landowners through realtor training. Expanding diversity and connectivity of forests through partnerships is another focus, pursuing greater proportions of both very old and very young forests on which different suites of declining wildlife species depend. 1 The 2020 strategy emphasizes the role of expanded forest markets that can support the kind of careful forest management that builds forest health and diversity over time, practices landowners can access regardless of income, education, or experience. Beyond equity considerations, renewable resource-based markets are critical to maintain viable local economies and jobs, keeping watershed areas rural with low impervious cover. Forestry technical assistance, cost-share and tax abatement programs are core commitments that help private landowners plan and carry out goals for their forest. Public access to technical expertise to translate landowner ideas into good forestry can make the difference in how well today’s forests transition into tomorrow’s productive and protective resources in a complex and changing ecology. New measures to conserve and expand forests to offset ongoing development are sought, from outreach initiatives and funding for restoration and conservation, to better interaction with local land use planning and permitting. The Forest Legacy Program and the newly approved Maryland Assessment of Need will be an important tool to augment state conservation programs with permanent easements for working forests. Manage Forest Health and Fire: Priorities include training, coordination, planning, and information exchange to most effectively manage forest health stressors, tapping partnerships such as The Nature Conservancy’s Fire Learning Network and Resilient Forests Program. Interagency and multi-partner planning with Maryland Department of Agriculture Forest Pest and Plant Protection programs will be continued for long-term strategies for problem species such as hemlock woolly adelgid, emerald ash borer, and spotted lanternfly. State lands will be used to strategically address forest health issues, including biocontrol release and recovery and training on invasive plant control. Maintaining readiness to address wildfires with training and equipment, proactively reducing risk through Firewise prevention, and carrying