Planning commission approves Water Resources Element with staff edits; Frederick County objects to a Mount Airy interconnection

Carroll County planning commissioners voted April 21 to approve the county portion of the revised Water Resources Element (2024/2026 version) with staff‑recommended edits and to forward it to the Board of County Commissioners for formal adoption. The commission’s vote excluded municipal system sections so each municipality can manage its own water system language.

Brenda, the county planner presenting the item, said the plan went through the state’s required 60‑day review and received mostly non‑substantive comments from agencies. Staff recommended incorporating clarifications, adding references to climate‑vulnerability tools and equity language, and including a handful of suggested action items. The edits did not change the plan’s substantive direction, Brenda said.

One substantive interjurisdictional question arose: Frederick County objected to a recommended option in the Mount Airy municipal section that identified a possible interconnection with Frederick County’s system. “Frederick County’s comment was essentially that they do not support that connection,” Brenda said; staff preserved the option in the Mount Airy section but added language that any such interconnection would require Frederick County concurrence.

Commissioners also asked about Westminster’s pilot “pure water” reclaimed‑water project. Brenda said the Westminster pilot will initially supply 500,000 gallons per day and can be expanded to 1 million gpd; the project takes highly treated wastewater, purifies it further and recirculates it into the water supply as a way to bolster local supply during drought.

The commission’s motion to approve the staff‑edited Water Resources Element (excluding municipal sections) passed on a roll‑call vote of 6–0. The chair will sign a resolution to forward the element to the Board of County Commissioners; state law requires the board to hold a public hearing before adoption.

Why it matters: The Water Resources Element documents the county’s assessment of water availability and options for future development and is part of the comprehensive plan; state comments led to added climate and equity references and clarified municipal sections. The Mount Airy–Frederick County interconnection remains listed only as an option pending Frederick concurrence.

Next steps: Chair to sign the resolution and staff to forward the county section to the Board of County Commissioners for a public hearing and final adoption.