Local projects to improve Great Lakes water quality
Editors: See attached list for local projects and contacts

Ann Arbor, Mich. -- Water quality and soil conservation in the Great Lakes states are getting a boost from a wide range of local projects that will promote erosion control, clearer streams and lakes, and sound land-use practices.

The Great Lakes Commission has selected 34 projects to share more than $715,000 in grants under its Great Lakes Basin Program for Soil Erosion and Sediment Control. Funding is provided through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA-NRCS).

"The Great Lakes Basin Program is a decade-long success story in state/federal/local partnership," said Nat Robinson, chairman of the Great Lakes Commission. "It's a great example of how we can improve water quality by promoting innovative land-use practices."

The projects (see full listing below) selected by the Commission range from information/education programs to physical measures designed to reduce erosion and improve water quality. Among them are the creation of buffer zones (grasses, shrubs and trees) to slow and filter stormwater runoff, prescribed grazing areas to protect grasses and other vegetation along streambanks, assistance for citizens and local officials in instituting stormwater and urban erosion controls, erosion control on rural construction sites, stream channel restoration and "soft engineering" installations along rivers and shorelines (i.e., covering shorelines with vegetation, matting or other material to hold soil in place).

"Improving Great Lakes water quality begins with sound land-use practices in our agricultural and urban areas," Robinson said. "It's projects like these that help improve and preserve the health of the entire Great Lakes ecosystem."

Since its creation in 1991, the Great Lakes Basin Program has supported 216 projects and invested more than $5.9 million in water quality improvement efforts, with an additional $3 million of non-federal matching funds applied to the projects. The Basin Program has placed well over 60,000 acres of land under some form of erosion and sediment control. In the process, the program has involved hundreds of community volunteers in watershed restoration projects, improved local ecosystems, and built support for ongoing environmental restoration efforts.

Successful applicants for this highly competitive grants program are chosen by the Commission's Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Task Force, comprised of state and federal officials.

The following local projects have been offered FY2002 funding under the Great Lakes Basin Program. Visit www.glc.org/basin/searchproject.html for information on previously funded projects.

Indiana
Farmer-to-Farmer Buffer Strips: $18,750
The St. Joseph River Watershed Initiative
Contact: Bill Lambert, 260-426-4637

Michigan
Building Detroit's Capacity to Implement Soft Engineering: $25,000
The Detroit/Wayne County Port Authority
Contact: John Kerr, 313-331-3842

Gratiot County Soil Erosion Control Program Development and Integration with County-wide Geographic Information System: $15,000
Gratiot County, Michigan
Contact: Daniel Skiver, 989-875-5282

Kalamazoo River Watershed Erosion/Sedimentation Control Project: $23,746
The Calhoun Conservation District
Contact: Tracy Bronson, 616-781-4867

Macomb Buffer Initiative: $15,500
The Macomb Conservation District
Contact: Seth Hopkins, 586-727-2666

Stream Channel Restoration Through Dam Removal: A Huron Pilot Project: $20,549
The Huron River Watershed Council
Contact: Elizabeth Riggs, 734-769-5123

Using "Soft Engineering" To Control Erosion on the Lower Boardman: $20,686
The Grand Traverse Conservation District
Contact: Steve Largent, 231-941-0960

White River Burying Ground Point Sediment Control at Hilt's Landing: $25,000
The Muskegon Conservation District
Contact: Kathy Evans, 231-773-0008

Minnesota
Lincoln Park Miller Creek Bed Restoration Project: $24,000
The City of Duluth
Contact: Lynn Ann Hollatz, 218-723-3357

Low Impact Development Demonstration Project: $25,000
The Lake Superior Association of Soil & Water Conservation Districts
Contact: Gene Clark, 218-723-4752.

Low-cost Shoreline Erosion Control Demonstration Project: $25,000
The Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources.
Contact: Gene Clark, 218-723-4752

Western Lake Superior NEMO Project – Community Program: $22,500
University of Minnesota Sea Grant
Contact: Cindy Hagley, 218-728-8713

New York
Assessment of Modeling Tools and Data Needs for Developing the Sediment Portion of the TMDL Plan for a Mixed Land-use Watershed: $25,028
The SUNY College at Buffalo
Contact: Dr. Shreeram Inamdar, 716-878-6229

Cazenovia Creek Steambank Stabilization – Joint Board 18R: $25,000
The Erie County Soil and Water Conservation District
Contact: Brian Andrzejewski, 716-652-8480

Cazenovia Creek Steambank Stabilization – Joint Board 27R: $25,000
The Erie County Soil and Water Conservation District
Contact: Brian Andrzejewski, 716-652-8480

Erie County Phase II Stormwater Education Program: $18,000
The Erie County Department of Environment and Planning
Contact: Mary Rossi, 716-858-7583

Franklin-St. Lawrence Soil Protection and Stabilization Program: $28,500
The Franklin County Soil and Water Conservation District
Contact: Andrew Snell, 518-483-4061

Owasco Lake Tributary Assessment and Management Plan Development: $15,015
The Cayuga County Department of Planning and Development
Contact: Michele Wunderlich, 315-253-1107

Prescribe Grazing Management Project: $24,976
The Seneca Trail Resource Conservation and Development Council Inc.
Contact: JoAnn Kurtis, 716-676-5111

Riparian Erosion Control Education Project: $16,725
The Cornell Cooperative Extension of Cayuga County
Contact: Kelly Sevier Fallone, 315-255-1183

Roadway Stormwater Management and Training Program Development: $36,050
The Monroe County Health Department for the Monroe County Stormwater Coalition
Contact: Margaret Peet, 585-274-8442

Scajaquada Creek Streambank Restoration for Erosion Control: $24,829
The Erie County Soil and Water Conservation District
Contact: Ellen Ilardo, 716-652-8480

Stabilizing High, Steep Stream Banks: A Natural Approach: $24,200
The Schuyler County Soil and Water Conservation District
Contact: Elaine Dalrymple, 607-535-9650

Ohio
Best Management Practices for Rural Roadside Runoff Control: $15,000
The Portage Soil and Water District
Contact: Dorothy Farris, 440-350-5861

Lake Erie Buffer Program GIS Development Project: $12,080
The Erie Basin RC&D
Contact: Ed McConoughey, 419-668-4113

Partnership Implementation of NPDES Phase II Minimum Control Measures: $14,747
The Geauga Soil and Water Conservation District
Contact: Carmella Shale, 440-834-1122

Rockin' and Rollin': School & Community NE Ohio Watershed Investigations: $6,500
The James H. Porter Center for Science and Mathematics
Contact: Michelle Haag, 440-352-8850

Streamside Landowners Fact Sheets: $22,500
The Cuyahoga Soil and Water Conservation District
Contact: Kristyn Albro, 216-524-6580

Pennsylvania
Green Roofs Can Detain and Remove Pollutants from Stormwater Runoff: $16,563
The Department of Horticulture, The Pennsylvania State University
Contact: David Beattie, 814-863-2263

Lake Erie Cliff Erosion Prevention Demonstration Project: $25,000
The Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority
Contact: Tom Maggio, 814-455-7557

Wisconsin
LaCount Parkway Stream Corridor Restoration Demonstration Project: $25,000
The City of Green Bay
Contact: Matthew Heckenlaible, 920-448-3100

Plum Creek Erosion Control and Sediment Reduction Project: $25,000
The Brown County Land Conservation Department
Contact: Bill Hafs, 920-391-4620

Stream Crossing Installation Videos and Powerpoint Presentations: $24,200
The Forest Industry Safety and Training Alliance, Inc. (FISTA)
Contact: Barb Henderson, 800-551-2656

Water and Sediment Control Basin in Fond du Lac County, WI: $4,542
The Fond du Lac County Land & Water Conservation Department
Contact: Ryan Rice, 920-923-3033

The Great Lakes Commission, chaired by Nathaniel E. Robinson (Wisconsin), is a nonpartisan, binational compact agency created by state and U.S. federal law and dedicated to promoting a strong economy, healthy environment and high quality of life for the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence region and its residents. The Commission consists of state legislators, agency officials, and governors' appointees from its eight member states. Associate membership for Ontario and Québec was established through the signing of a "Declaration of Partnership." The Commission maintains a formal Observer program involving U.S. and Canadian federal agencies, tribal authorities, binational agencies and other regional interests. The Commission offices are located in Ann Arbor, Michigan.