Maryland Code, Natural Resources § 5-9B-06

(1) Provide technical support and assistance to local governments in the development of local land preservation programs, including mapping, and identification of smaller parcels that may be aggregated for protection under local land preservation programs;

(2) Adopt criteria for distributing available State funding to local land preservation programs in accordance with the purposes of this subtitle;

(3) Assist sponsors to coordinate land preservation efforts in their regions under local land preservation and recreation plans with related efforts under Program Open Space, the Rural Legacy Program, the Heritage Area Program, the Agricultural Land Preservation Program, and the GreenPrint Program; and

(4) Consult with other federal, State, and local units and private land trusts in order to facilitate conservation efforts under this subtitle.

(1) Preservation of open space;

(2) Containment of sprawl development; and

(3) Improvement of water quality in the Chesapeake Bay and other watersheds of the State.

(1) The current population of participating jurisdictions and adjacent areas;

(2) Projected population growth in those areas;

(3) The sensitivity of surface and ground waters in and derived from those areas to degradation from point and nonpoint source pollution; and

(4) Giving higher priority to applications for the protection of lands and land uses that provide the highest level of protection for water quality.