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By CHRIS MORELLI
cmorelli@lockhaven.com
BELLEFONTE -- Centre County is getting greener.
The Centre County Conservation District recently received a $1.6 million Growing Greener grant that will help protect area waterways.
"We're excited to announce that back in December, we were awarded a Growing Greener grant," District Manager Bob Sweitzer said at Tuesday's meeting of the commissioners. "The Growing Greener program is funded through the Environmental Stewardship Fund. It's funded by landfill tipping fees."
John Wataha, agricultural conservation tech for Centre County, was thrilled with the grant.
"This is the largest growing greener grant we've ever received," Wataha said. "In 2017, we received a $700,000 grant and two years before that, we received $500,000."
The grant provides funding to implement stream restoration and construct riparian buffers at 10 sites in Centre County.
According to Wataha, the county will use the money for four stream stabilization projects and six agriculture best management practice projects.
The projects will take place in Boggs, College, Curtin, Haines, Halfmoon, Patton, Tayor, Walker and Union townships and will include work on Halfmoon, Slab Cabin Run, Little Fishing Creek, Marsh Creek, Bald Eagle Creek, Sinking Creek and Elk Creek watersheds.
"One of the reasons why we were successful in getting the grant is that we have lots of match. We have over $1 million in match," Wataha said.
The projects are designed to limit and reverse the effects of agriculture on these area streams that eventually flow into the Susquehanna River. The projects will begin in 2019 and will take place over the next three years, with plans to finish a third of the projects each year.
This 2019 Growing Greener grant, through the Department of Environmental Protection, will be used to establish 23.4 acres of forest buffers and protect 8,000 linear feet of stream bank. These improvements will reduce pollution into the Susquehanna watershed, eliminating an estimated 418 tons of sediment and more than 13,000 pounds of nitrogen and phosphorus pollution annually.
"The first step in getting grant money," Wataha said, "is having a plan in place first."
Sweitzer said that the county will put the grant money to good use.
"We hope to do more than 10 projects with this money. We typically pad the grant applications so we have a little more to do. It takes two to three years to implement the grants. In that time, we might pick up some more match, which makes the money go further," he said.
Centre County Commissioner Steve Dershem said that the grant will aid Centre County's conservation efforts.
"You see the success … $1.7 million. That's huge money. That's going to make a difference in our watershed," Dershem said.
Commissioner Michael Pipe echoed those sentiments.
"Amazing work. It's going to help Centre County's environment out tremendously. We appreciate it so much," Pipe said.
The Growing Greener projects have been used to help clean up abandoned mine lands, preserve farmland, protect and restore watersheds throughout the state.