Office of Environmental Sustainability
Welcome to Frederick County's Office of Environmental Sustainability! Our mission is to advance practical solutions for protecting the environment, conserving energy, and living sustainably in Frederick County, Maryland.
Working towards a Sustainable Frederick County requires initiative and leadership from the entire community. There is a role for everyone to play -- please join us in our journey! Explore the links to the left to learn what residents, schools, and businesses can do -- and what the County is doing to build a sustainable future for the region.
The Frederick County Sustainability Commission meets monthly on the 3rd Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. in the 3rd floor meeting room of Winchester Hall. Their agendas, minutes, and meeting materials are available to the left. **There will be no August meeting.**
What is sustainability?
The term sustainability refers to practices that can be continued indefinitely without adversely impacting future generations' quality of life. Maureen Hart, a national expert in the field of sustainable communities provides a terrific primer titled, What is sustainability, anyway? You can find it here.
Download a Glossary of sustainable communities-related terminology compiled by Don Briggs, Chair of the Sustainability Commission.
OES Newsletter
Are you on our email newsletter list? If not, click here to sign up and receive this quarterly update from the office.
Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Inventory Report
On August 24th, OES staff will present a report to the Board of County Commissioners on the Frederick County GHG Report. The report addresses emissions attributed to county government operations as well as the community-at-large. The report and inventory were supported by funding from the U.S. Department of Energy. View staff's presentation to the BOCC. Click here for climate and emissions resources.
Sustainable Action Plan for County Operations presentation
A 32-member team of Frederick County government employees has produced this action plan to be presented to the Board of County Commissioners on Thursday August 26th. The plan aims to integrate sustainable practices into county operations and decision-making processes. The plan addresses 7 areas: leading by example; conserving energy and reducing emissions; implementing green building practices; making green purchasing decisions; protecting green infrastructure; recycling and reducing waste; and choosing transportation alternatives.
Western Maryland Solar and Green Homes Tour
With so many solar and green homes' projects popping up in our region, it was time to go out on our own with a Western MD tour. Details on the tour are here.
Go Green Energy Conference
On June 7th, our Office participated as an exhibitor and session moderator for Congressman Bartlett's Go Green Energy Conference. More than 1,000 people attended and our office connected with many new people. All day we reinforced the message that saving energy really does save money!
