New York State Announces $1.7 Million In Clean Water Planning Projects

Stimulus Funds Give Green Light to 11 Projects From Long Island to the Finger Lakes

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Pete Grannis recently announced the award of $1.7 million from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to planning boards and commissions across the state to improve local water quality.

The federal stimulus funding will help communities develop and implement an array of projects, ranging from collecting water quality data to improving stormwater management to analyzing opportunities for installing "green" infrastructure. The 11 awards were selected through a competitive process.

"Effective planning is crucial to the protection of New York's waters and without federal stimulus money, these important local projects could not be completed," said Commissioner Grannis. "These awards represent an investment in clean water for generations to come. Thanks to the efforts of Governor Paterson and our Congressional Delegation, stimulus money for clean water projects is flowing into New York to help protect public health and the environment, and create jobs."

"The freshwater from the Great Lakes and the Finger Lakes is one of our greatest local resources," said Congresswoman Louise Slaughter. "I'm pleased that federal stimulus dollars are going towards grants used to help us keep local waters clean."

"I'm glad to see this Recovery Act project moving forward to improve our local environment and our local economy," said Congressman Eric Massa. "The stimulus was designed to create jobs and have something to show for it at the end of the day and that's exactly what this project is all about. I look forward to making more announcements like this in the near future."

"Visitors from across the country and around the world are drawn to the natural beauty of Upstate New York," said Congressman Scott Murphy. "Thanks to this critical investment to update our infrastructure, we can not only stave off the threat of erosion in the region, but we can ensure that future generations will be able to enjoy the water resources we have here today."

 

ARRA-Funded Water Quality Projects

Applicant	Amount	Project Description
Great Lakes Commission	$254,695	Collect phosphorus data for Lake Ontario tributaries
Hudson Valley Regional Council	$285,000	Develop a green infrastructure planning program in at least 7 communities and plan for at least 10 projects in each participating community
Lake Champlain-Lake George Regional Planning Board	$130,625	Catalog, Assess and Prioritize sites in the basin that are vulnerable to erosion and develop an action plan
Interstate Environmental Commission	$232,893	Provide Long Island-wide stormwater management planning assistance.
Herkimer-Oneida Counties Comprehensive Planning Program	$95,000	Develop and Maintain stormwater planning.
Central NY Regional Planning and Development Bd.	$237,500	Conduct regional green infrastructure planning and carry out stormwater management activities that address Onondaga Lake phosphorus
Southern Tier Central Regional Planning and Development Bd.	$285,000	Develop a regional action plan for the Chemung and Susquehanna River Basins for eco-system based management
Genesee/Finger Lakes Regional Planning Council	$97,369	Assess and inventory stormwater needs to determine potential green infrastructure projects
Interstate Environmental Commission	$28,500	Collaborate with the Croton-Kensico Watershed Intermunicipal Coalition to develop regional stormwater map
Interstate Environmental Commission	$87,171	Conduct wet and dry weather sampling and modeling of the Byram River (Westchester County)
Genesee/Finger Lakes Regional Planning Council	$13,887	Provide online information of impervious areas of the nine-county region for use in long-term stormwater planning.

SOURCE: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)