FY2025 Proposed Operating and Capital Budgets

FY2025 Proposed Budget Organizational Budgets

Division of Energy & Environment

Frederick County submitted our Maximum Extent Practicable (MEP) analysis to MDE in October 2021. This analysis considers the financial capabilities, project availability, typical implementation timelines and other factors to help ascertain what level of implementation is actually feasible to set for the next permit goal. This analysis of our program was conducted through conversation between Frederick County and MDE in conjunction with MDE’s spreadsheet tool they developed for this exercise. These efforts and communications helped MDE to understand the practicalities of Frederick County’s stormwater efforts and correctly size the restoration requirements of the next permit. MDE set the County’s impervious restoration goal at 1,027 acres in the new permit. B y the end of FY23 we had accomplished 214.88 acres of restoration towards that requirement and have adapted our CIP implementation plan, and subsequent requests, to meet the full requirement by permit expiration. On February 1, 2023, MDE issued the new 20-SW General Permit for Stormwater Industrial Discharges. At the start of FY’24, DEE applied for coverage under this new 20 -SW General Permit for Stormwater Industrial Discharges. As the year progressed, we received an evaluation from MDE citing Frederick County as 100% compliant with its stormwater permits. The County submitted its FY’23 Annual Report to MDE in December 2023 and awaits a review of this submission. Permit compliance efforts will continue in FY’25. Watershed Restoration and Reforestation Restoration includes identification, design, and construction of a variety of projects, such as septic pump-outs, stream restoration, stormwater pond/facility retrofits, new stormwater facilities, reforestation, and stormwater wetlands. These projects are framed by the County’s Restoration Plan, which meets regulations for water body impairments known as Total Maximum Daily Loads and reduces untreated urban impervious surfaces draining to waterways. In FY’24, we received $1,050,717 in grant funding from the Chesapeake and Coastal Grants Gateway for our award-winning Creek ReLeaf reforestation program. By the beginning of FY’24 we had completed 215 acres of watershed restoration towards our goal of 1,027 acres for the five- year permit. In FY’25 we plan to have 462 acres completed. The request for the FY’25 Watershed CIP is $8,406,400. Monitoring and Maintenance impacts to the operating budget in FY’25 are $736,216, in line with last year’s request. MDE issued Accounting for Stormwater Wasteload Allocations and Impervious Acres Treated (November 2021) in

November 2021 that changed crediting for some restoration practices like stream restorations and reforestation efforts. Through State interactions, DEE had forecasted these changes and adjusted our strategy early to streamline our implementation. Given streams and trees increased crediting values, they will continue to play a larger role in our portfolio moving forward. This goes hand in hand with our feasibility studies under the Watershed Assessments CIP Project and given the new requirements as stated above, there continues to be a need for updated watershed assessments. Stream restorations have become a focal point in the restoration world recently due to the increased crediting towards MS4 permits and the subsequent increase in planned implementation. Stream restorations are a very effective tool not only for water quality treatment and biohabitat creation/protection, but also in the control of quantity and flood routing. While upland stormwater practices like ponds, bioretentions and stormwater swales are very effective at

Figure 4: Accomplishments in year 1 of NPDES MS4 permit

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