6.1.4 Preservation of Forests and Carbon Sinks

LPDD Recommendation: “The federal government could institute urban growth boundaries around cities of a certain population, or develop other density and urban infill requirements for American cities.”

LPDD Recommendation: “Congress could require the use of forested or vegetative buffer zones to protect watersheds in agricultural areas, reducing nonpoint source water pollution, while creating small carbon sinks that could be significant when aggre­gated.”

LPDD Recommendation: “Congress could restrict the conversion of “natural” forests to monoculture plantations.”

LPDD Recommendation: “To maintain forest and agricultural lands, state legislatures may develop programs to prohibit development of lands in one area and allow the transfer of development rights to other areas.”

California EO B-52-18

Commits $96 million in additional state funds to: Improving Forest Management and Restoration; Providing Regulatory Relief; Reducing Barriers for Prescribed Fire; Boosting Education and Outreach to Land Owners; and for Supporting Wood Products.

Tennessee Growth Policy Act

Established a comprehensive growth policy for the state, part of which was a requirement to designate urban growth boundaries, planned growth areas, and rural areas based on projections of growth over a 20-year period. 

Oregon’s Urban Growth Boundary Plan

Protects rural agricultural and forestlands outside the boundary. The Columbia Region Association of Governments proposed an urban growth boundary for the Portland region in 1977, which has been periodically amended.

Maryland Forest Conservation Act

Requires counties in the state with less than 200,000 acres of forest to set aside forest acreage for preservation. Washington County's Forest Conservation Ordinance provides an example.