In partnership with New York Sea Grant, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) recently announced $192,000 in grants for nine projects to help Great Lakes coastal communities enhance their resiliency and protect water quality.
Grants will be awarded to the following organizations:
City of Rochester
$25,000 to develop a Green Infrastructure Design and Maintenance Manual to encourage and guide the proper use and installation of green infrastructure technologies with an emphasis on retrofit and redevelopment projects.
Genesee/Finger Lakes Regional Planning Council
$25,000 to provide outreach and education to municipalities to promote enrollment in the National Flood Insurance Program’s Community Rating System (CRS), which focuses on reducing risk and building resilience.
University at Buffalo
$25,000 to quantify nutrient fluxes from representative urban and agricultural subwatersheds in Western New York to better understand the sources and timing of these fluxes and their impacts on the nearshore areas of NY’s Great Lakes.
Wayne County Soil and Water Conservation District
$25,000 to assess, research, and complete geographical, fisheries, and wildlife surveys to aid in the establishment of an action plan to restore Port Bay’s East Barrier Bar.
Onondaga Environmental Institute
$24,998 to enhance the resiliency, water quality and aquatic habitat value of Onondaga Creek by increasing riparian buffers, improving bank stability, and removing invasive Phragmites.
Finger Lakes Institute
$20,112 to develop a water quality monitoring program that works with citizen scientists to determine levels and sources of nutrients and bacteria in the nearshore area of Cayuga Lake.
Clarkson University
$18,630 to measure high resolution water quality parameters in the nearshore zone of the St. Lawrence River that will assist water resource managers in assessing risk, uncertainties, and changing conditions related to water level and water quality management in this region.
Center for Transformative Action
$15,000 to create and distribute 20 CurrentCast (60-second syndicated radio series and podcast) segments that educate the public about issues and activities related to topics such as stormwater management, shoreline protection, flooding and erosion protection, riparian restoration, wetlands protection, and green infrastructure
Owasco Lake Watershed Inspection Program
$14,183 to develop the Tributary Adoption and Identification Pilot Program resulting in simple, public-friendly information management tools focused on enhancing local public awareness, involvement, and understanding of watershed issues and concerns.
New York’s Great Lakes Basin Small Grants Program is made possible by the NYS Environmental Protection Fund and Article 14, “Ocean and Great Lakes Ecosystem Conservation Act,” of the state’s Environmental Conservation Law.
Grant projects support the goals of an Interim New York Great Lakes Action Agenda (GLAA), a plan for applying ecosystem-based management to complex environmental problems in order to conserve, protect, and enhance Great Lakes natural resources.
source: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation