COLUMBUS, OH - Six Ohio watershed groups will receive more than $234,000 in grants to help support local stream and river protection. Grant funding will come from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) and the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA).
The grants are part of $4 million allocated by ODNR and Ohio EPA to fund watershed coordinator positions throughout the state over a six-year period. Each grant recipient has committed to producing a watershed plan that will restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of streams within its jurisdiction - an objective of the 1972 Clean Water Act.
Water quality has continually improved in Ohio over the past 30 years. And local watershed groups have played an essential part in those efforts, said Ohio Governor Bob Taft. These grants will allow local watershed groups to strengthen their focus and meet the water quality challenges of the future.
As a funding requirement, each grant recipient must provide in-kind services such as office space, office equipment and transportation for the watershed coordinator it hires.
The following is a list of the six watershed projects that received new funds in the 2002 round of grants:
Grand River Partners, Inc. received $40,000 to support a watershed coordinator for its namesake river in northeast Ohio. Grand River Partners, Inc. is a land trust that has actively acquired conservation easements along the Grand River and now wants to expand its role in protecting the river. Goal of the organization is to achieve a net gain in the health of the Grand by protecting stream segments that are currently meeting water quality standards and improving those that are not.
The Meigs County Soil & Water District received $34,750 to hire a coordinator to produce a watershed plan for Leading Creek. The coordinator will write a plan to abate acid mine drainage along the creek and address other factors harming water quality in the area, such as sedimentation from logging and farming.
The Friends of Alum Creek received $40,000 to continue work on a plan that will preserve green space in the creek's densely populated and ethnically diverse watershed. The goal of the organization is to restore sections of the creek where possible into a meandering, sinuous waterway with a protective riparian buffer.
The West Creek Preservation Committee received $40,000 to fund a watershed coordinator position for this important tributary of the Cuyahoga River. Over the last five years, the grassroots organization has worked to protect the nine-mile creek, passing a bond issue to acquire land for riparian corridor protection, creating a concept plan for the West Creek Preserve and acquiring $4.25 million for land and easement acquisition from a variety of sources.
The Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District received $40,000 to hire a coordinator for the Euclid Creek watershed. The Euclid Creek watershed project will build upon the successful efforts by Friends of Euclid Creek and the Euclid Creek Watershed Council to plan for the creek's future. Possible implementation measures include the acquisition of headwater streams for protection and improving the structure of the channel.
The Mercer County Soil & Water Conservation District and the Wabash Watershed Alliance received $40,000 to hire a coordinator for the Wabash River watershed. Their goal is to restore and enhance the Wabash by reducing nonpoint source pollution and protecting the natural stream channel.