MONTGOMERY COUNTRYSIDE ALLIANCE INC

Land and Water Protection: The sixth year of the Re-Leaf the Reserve program saw more acres along stream buffers planted to improve water and air quality - the program has now planted 5500 trees. MCA partnered with Friends of Ten Mile Creek to maintain strong protections for our backup water supply. We partnered with other local civic organizations to ensure critical protections for farmland and our shared water supply through public testimony. MCA provided much needed outreach to residents on well and septic systems in the County during this year's prolonged drought as part of the Good Gift Groundwater Campaign. Outreach around how to test PFAS in water was undertaken after the EPA ruling limiting forever chemicals in drinking water. MCA worked with the owner of a proposed data center along the Potomac to fine tune their site plan to balance use of local water resources.

Education: We conducted tours of local farms and water quality monitoring sites for local high school students. The 2024 Royce Hanson award honored the advocacy and community service of 5th generation farmer Doug Lechlider. MCA started work on a new project, the Good Gift Groundwater Campaign. The program published an extensive study of the Poolesville Sole Source Aquifer, the impacts of climate change on the resource, and a survey of local landowners about care of wells and septic systems. Educational outreach included interactive sessions with our new interactive Enviroscape model at schools and events along with webinars about protecting groundwater at the household and community level. MCA also conducted a webinar about balancing solar arrays with farming in the County.