Waterways in Worcester County are protected by good zoning
Worcester County may be home to Maryland’s most popular ocean resort, but many who visit the sands of Ocean City may be surprised to learn that the county also has significant agricultural and natural areas. The same county that beckons hundreds of thousands every summer has, through deliberate, effective planning, maintained 89 percent of its area in agriculture and resource conservation.
Much of the reason for Worcester County’s conservation successes is the Coastal Bays Program, which since 1996 has worked to keep the county’s land use planning focused on preservation. The Coastal Bays Program’s most recent campaign to retain agricultural zoning won it a Preservation & Conservation Award from the Maryland Sustainable Growth Commission on February 5.
The county comp plan and zoning places farmland off limits to development
Worcester County’s conservation-oriented land use dates back to the 1990s. The county comprehensive plan and zoning code set forth restrictive agricultural zoning that, by placing farmland off limits to development, targeted resources and funds to cities and towns – Ocean City, Berlin, Snow Hill and Pocomoke City.
The Coastal Bays Program helped shore up those efforts over the last two decades, building public support through multimedia campaigns that educated residents about the benefits of smart growth. The organization publicly and vocally supported restrictive zoning that would maintain large tracts of forests that preserve water quality as well as the agricultural land needed to keep farming viable.
The award-winning campaign occurred in 2012 after the state passed the Septics Law limiting major residential subdivisions built on septic systems. After the law took effect, the Worcester County Commissioners drafted an ordinance to increase the density of the A-1 zone from five lots to seven, which had the potential to increase growth by at least 40 percent.
“While the reasoning was well-intentioned – to give farmers more lots to sell – the outcome would have not only had a deleterious effect on agriculture in Worcester County, but also would have increased the tax burden on existing property owners,” said Dave Wilson, Coastal Bays Program executive director. “Via newspaper, TV and radio, we argued fragmentation from subdivision was the biggest threat to farming and forestry.”
A density increase would have run counter to water quality goals for the bays, the foundation of the county’s tourism economy. The organization estimated that the change would allow 2,000 more septic systems, all pumping nutrients into the bays by Ocean City and Assateague.
Coastal Bays Program: Fragmentation from subdivision the biggest threat to farming and forests
The Coastal Bays campaign blanketed the air waves and relied on messaging about water quality, critical habitat and the county’s bottom line. Editorials by the organization and supportive residents made the case that hundreds of thousands of dollars invested in replacing septic systems with wastewater treatment plant hook-ups and advantageous income and property taxes as a result of good planning were at stake.
It worked. At a public hearing crowded with more than 80 people, community leaders told the commissioners that planning and zoning was critical to maintain the economic and environmental health of the towns. They asked county leaders to curtail sprawl and protect natural resources. The vote went against the proposed zoning change, leading to Worcester County’s continuation as a leader in planning.
“Opponents said strong agricultural zoning is war on rural Maryland while we argued such zoning was the only thing that could save it,” Wilson said.
Leave a Reply