Establishing a Forest Mitigation Bank

Montgomery Planning is currently accepting applications for forest mitigation banks that plant new forest in Montgomery County. Please select one of the options below to see the list of requirements for forest mitigation banks, steps to submitting a forest mitigation bank application, and important information regarding selling forest mitigation bank credits.

Forest Mitigation Bank Requirements

Size:: Forest mitigation banks must be at least one acre.
Location:: Forest mitigation banks may be accepted on any undeveloped land in Montgomery County with no existing easements. Land that contains agricultural easements may be acceptable if the agricultural easement is subordinated to the Category I Forest Conservation Easement protecting the forest mitigation bank.
Quality:: Any location that is overgrown with invasive species will require invasive treatment as part of the forest mitigation bank plan.
Planting:: Either of the following ratios of appropriate B&B or container grown native trees must be planted:

200 ¾” – 1″ caliper trees per acre

100 1.5″ – 2″ caliper trees per acre

Proper planting methods and deer protection are required.

The above information must be included on the forest mitigation bank plan.
Permanent Protection:: A Category I Forest Conservation Easement must be recorded in land records for every forest mitigation bank. This easement permanently protects the forest and is subject to periodic inspection for compliance with the terms of the easement. Signage indicating that the area is a permanently protected forest conservation area is also required to be posted.
Establishing a Forest Mitigation Bank through the Development Process:: Forest may be planted in excess of the requirements of a Forest Conservation Plan to establish a forest mitigation bank. In this case, the approved Forest Conservation Plan may be accepted in place of a Forest Mitigation Bank Plan if all required components are shown.
Funding Restrictions:: Forests that are planted using funds or other incentives from state, federal or local programs such as CREP, Stream Releaf, or Reforest Montgomery may not become part of a forest mitigation bank.
Ownership:: The rights to a forest mitigation bank belong to the property owner. If the property owner sells property with a forest mitigation bank that has unsold forest mitigation bank credits remaining, they may only continue to sell credits if the conveyance of the property indicates that the right to the forest mitigation bank remains with the entity that created it. Montgomery Planning must be provided a copy of any such conveyance transaction.

If a property is sold or dedicated to the Montgomery County Parks Department, a defined sunset date after which forest mitigation bank transactions will no longer be allowed must be part of the parkland dedication deed, and Montgomery Planning must be provided a copy of the parkland dedication deed.

Submitting a Forest Mitigation Bank Application

The steps to submitting an application for a Forest Mitigation Bank and receiving approval to sell credits are listed below.

1. Pre-Application Meeting

Property owners who are considering establishing a forest mitigation bank are encouraged to schedule a pre-application meeting with the forest mitigation bank program manager. This meeting is an opportunity to review the land area under consideration for forest mitigation banking and address any questions about the application process or requirements of the forest mitigation bank program.

2. Natural Resources Inventory/Forest Stand Delineation (NRI/FSD) and Forest Mitigation Bank Plan Application

The application process for forest mitigation banks has two requirements. A full NRI/FSD application must be submitted and approved along with a Forest Mitigation Bank Plan. If an NRI/FSD for the property has already been approved by Montgomery Planning and has not expired, the existing NRI/FSD may satisfy this application requirement.

The Forest Mitigation Bank Plan must show all features of the approved NRI/FSD as well as the proposed forest mitigation bank area; proposed quantity, size, and species of trees to be planted; locations of forest conservation area signs to be posted; proposed planting schedule; planting techniques; and deer protection method.

A forest mitigation bank may be established through the development process if forest is planted in excess of the requirements of a Forest Conservation Plan. In this case, the approved NRI/FSD and Forest Conservation Plan may be accepted in place of a new NRI/FSD and Forest Mitigation Bank Plan if all required components noted above are shown.

3. Recording a Category I Forest Conservation Easement

Once the Forest Mitigation Bank Plan has been approved, a Category I Forest Conservation Easement must be recorded in land records to permanently protect the forest mitigation bank.

4. Planting

The forest conservation inspector will inspect the planting to confirm that it has been completed in compliance with the Forest Mitigation Bank Plan. The forest mitigation bank must either post a 2 year performance bond or conduct 2 years of successful maintenance and management before forest mitigation bank credits can be sold. In order to be approved to sell credits or to have the bond released, at least 75% of trees planted must be surviving at the end of 2 years if 200 trees per acre are planted, or at least 100% of the trees planted must be surviving at the end of 2 years if 100 trees per acre are planted.

5. Approval to Sell Credits

A forest mitigation bank is approved to sell credits when the forest mitigation bank program manager provides a signed approval letter, stating that the above requirements have been satisfied and noting the quantity of forest mitigation bank credits approved for sale.

Selling Forest Mitigation Bank Credits

Every forest mitigation bank must have a dedicated forest mitigation bank operator who can be contacted by applicants to coordinate the sale of forest mitigation bank credits. Once the forest mitigation bank is approved to sell credits, contact information for the forest mitigation bank operator and the quantity of available credits in the forest mitigation bank will be listed publicly. Montgomery Planning does not regulate the cost of forest mitigation bank credits; forest mitigation bank operators may pursue their own pricing structure.

Forest mitigation bank operators are required to confirm that an applicant has an approved Forest Conservation Plan before proceeding with a transaction for forest mitigation bank credits. This can be confirmed by searching the plan number in DAIC or contacting the forest mitigation bank program manager. Applicants must also purchase forest mitigation bank credits from the same watershed as their project if credits are available from any forest mitigation bank in that watershed.

A Certificate of Compliance documenting each transaction must be mailed to Montgomery Planning for review, signature, and notarization. After the Certificate of Compliance is approved and mailed back to the forest mitigation bank operator, the forest mitigation bank operator must record the Certificate of Compliance in land records. The forest mitigation bank operator is also required to provide the liber folio for this Certificate of Compliance to the forest mitigation bank program manager once it is available, so that the Certificate of Compliance can be located in the land records.

Forest mitigation bank credits must be sold to applicants and cannot be held for a forest mitigation bank owner or operator’s own projects. For example, if 1 acre of forest mitigation bank credit is remaining in a forest mitigation bank and an applicant with an approved Forest Conservation Plan requests to purchase this acre, the remaining credit must be sold to the applicant.

If the condition of a forest mitigation bank deteriorates to the point that it is no longer considered forest, or a forest mitigation bank operator becomes unresponsive, Montgomery Planning may withhold forest mitigation bank transactions or close the forest mitigation bank.