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Planning commission begins multi-month review of county water resources element
Summary
Carroll County planning staff outlined a multi-month schedule July 15 to update the county’s Water Resources Element, required by state law to align future land use with water, wastewater and stormwater capacity.
Carroll County planning staff outlined a multi-month schedule July 15 to update the county’s Water Resources Element (WRE), a required element of the comprehensive plan designed to align future land use with local water, wastewater and stormwater capacity.
Staff said the WRE update revises the 2010 plan to reflect state guidance issued in 2022, climate-change requirements, Chesapeake Bay total maximum daily load (TMDL) obligations, new drinking-water limits for emerging contaminants (including PFAS), and changes in municipal and regional infrastructure. The consultant-updated assessment is based on 2023 Maryland Department of the Environment guidance and the county’s 2023 water and sewer service-area designations.
Presenters described the countywide approach: staff worked with the Water Resource Coordination Council and municipal partners to evaluate drinking water supply, wastewater capacity, and stormwater regulation across jurisdictions. The update covers countywide estimates of groundwater availability and system-level demand and capacity, and includes recommended countywide strategies and short- and long-term action items for municipalities and the county.
Commissioners asked whether agricultural land-preservation easements and municipal boundaries would be excluded from calculations used to determine priority preservation area capacity for siting energy projects. Staff said the topic is under discussion at the state and regional level and may be clarified in forthcoming legislation; staff will investigate easement acreage within priority preservation areas and report back.
Staff laid out the review process: municipal planning commissions are reviewing the draft now; staff will incorporate municipal feedback, present drinking-water and wastewater details for the commission in August, address stormwater/climate/emerging-contaminant issues in September, present countywide strategies in October, municipal specifics in November, and aim to send a revised draft for the statutorily required 60-day interagency and adjoining-jurisdiction review and joint public hearing thereafter. After the state review and a joint public hearing, the Planning Commission will hold its required public hearing and forward a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners for final action.
No formal commission action was taken; staff said the WRE will continue to be refined and that portions of the document will inform the broader master-plan process.
