Social
Environmental Justice The MDTA recognizes the importance of and strives to uphold environmental justice across all of the agency’s operations and construction activities. Economically distressed communities often face greater hardships in raising revenue necessary for infrastructure projects and are more susceptible to the negative effects of environmental pollution. Pollution-burdened communities are typically characterized as those in proximity to sources of pollution, which leads to elevated health risks and lower life expectancy among residents. Often, communities experience both disadvantages simultaneously. These challenges intersect, creating a compounded effect where the lack of economic resources makes it difficult for these communities to address and recover from environmental issues and easier for polluting entities to avoid accountability. Cycles of economic hardship exacerbated by health problems due to pollution may follow, which in turn hinders economic recovery and growth. The MDTA evaluates community impacts alongside environmental impacts to understand potential interconnected and overlapping affects of the agency’s activities. In the coming years, the MDTA will continue to evolve and enhance its environmental justice efforts and programs.
dam analog structures to maintain grade and backwater the creek to raise the groundwater levels to support the created wetlands. The restored stream reach also provides measurable reductions in total maximum daily nutrient loads. The entire site was seeded and stabilized with native herbaceous plant species and replanted with native trees. Drainage Outfall Remediation The MDTA initiated efforts to remediate drainage outfalls due to factors including failed structural integrity, components that have reached the end of their life, and increased sediment deposition. The MDTA aims to reduce pollutant loads and control stormwater discharge into natural waterways by updating infrastructure, enhancing infiltration, stabilizing depleted and highly erodible soils, and reducing erosion at outfall sites. During FY 2025, MDTA division staff conducted Natural Resource Investigations (NRI) to determine impacts to wetlands, waterways, and forests to confirm compliance with permitting regulations and requirements. In FY 2026, several drainage outfalls are expected to be remediated to current environmental standards with improved water quality and reduced pollutant loads, furthering the MDTA’s sustainability goals. An outfall inspection form has been developed and is currently in testing to standardize the process. This form will ensure that each inspection is conducted in a way that the desired information is captured.
As part of its commitment to social responsibility, the MDTA engages actively with employees, communities, and other stakeholders to engender transparency and accountability and ensure that its activities align with positive societal outcomes. These social efforts focus on an array of topics that support the health, safety, and well-being of employees, communities, and Marylanders that use MDTA roadways. Employee Engagement, Development and Well-being The MDTA strongly believes that high employee retention, engagement, and development is critical to the agency’s success and performance. Health Benefits Employees are given the opportunity to join a State- subsidized health insurance plan. Health benefits include a variety of plans: ③ Choice of several major medical plans
The MDTA emphasizes providing employees with the opportunity to grow through career development guidance, continuous education, and tuition reimbursement.
③ Vision ③ Dental ③ Term life insurance ③ Prescription ③ Health care and dependent care spending accounts
Management of Employee Engagement and Well-being
The MDTA enhances its employee experience continually through competitive benefits and programmatic engagement efforts. MDTA employees enjoy a robust compensation and benefits package and numerous development opportunities. The MDTA’s employee engagement, development, and well-being efforts help mitigate employee turnover and build a strong organizational culture. As shown in the table below, MDTA's turnover rates decreased overall from 2023 to 2024.
③ Accidental death and dismemberment plan
Road culvert runoff, Stock photo.
EMPLOYEE TURNOVER RATES* GENDER 2021
2022
2023
2024
Female
14.76% 10.64% 11.91%
12.21% 13.14% 12.85%
11.74% 18.92% 16.78%
12.88% 12.69% 12.63%
Male Total
*Turnover rate is percentage of employee separations in the calendar year based on annual average number of employees.
29
Governance, Risk, and Impact Report
30
Governance, Risk, and Impact Report
Made with FlippingBook Digital Proposal Creator