The bet365下载ios (Service) today announced 37 grant awards totaling more than $8.1 million to support recreation, water quality, water management, and habitat conservation throughout the Delaware River watershed. Grantee organizations have committed nearly $22.1 million in match, for a total conservation impact of $30.2 million.
The grants were awarded through the (Fund), a program administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). The Fund is coordinated by the Service to achieve the goals of the Delaware River Basin Conservation Act. The Act guides and supports federal, state, regional and local partners to collaboratively identify, prioritize, and implement habitat restoration and conservation activities within the watershed.
This year鈥檚 grant slate also includes projects that address disparities in access to nature by putting equity, justice and cultural competency at the core of their work.
鈥淚nvesting in conservation now helps ensure a sustainable future for the Delaware River watershed, a region where communities, lives, and livelihoods depend upon a healthy environment,鈥 said Mike Slattery, landscape partnership coordinator for the Service.
鈥淭hree years into the Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund grant program, we have tremendous momentum with 90 funded projects led by a range of partners working at different scales,鈥 Slattery said. 鈥淓ach investment produces positive ripple effects across the watershed, adding up to long-term conservation outcomes for human and natural communities that are significantly greater than the sum of their parts.鈥
The awards announced today were granted to projects in Delaware, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. The grants provide vital support to migratory and resident wildlife, fish and native plants, and contribute to the quality of life and economic vitality of the communities in the watershed. Grant awards include:
(New Jersey) $94,823 to New Jersey Audubon Society for 鈥淩estoring Atlantic White-Cedar in the Maurice River and Rancocas Creek Watersheds鈥
(Pennsylvania) $258,366.56 to John Bartram Association for 鈥淵outh Stewardship and Community Recreation Access on the Tidal Schuylkill River鈥
(Delaware) $500,000 to the Delaware Department of Natural Resources for 鈥淩estoring Wetland Habitat and Water Control in the Thousand Acre Marsh鈥
(Watershed-wide) $499,999 for the National Wildlife Federation鈥檚 鈥淒elaware River Basin Urban Wildlife Community Engagement Program鈥
In total, the projects will improve 6,783 acres of forest habitat, treat polluted runoff using agricultural conservation practices on more than 4,596 acres, restore 141 acres of wetland habitat, and improve 3.5 miles of instream habitat in critical headwaters. See the full list of 2020 Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund grants here:
The Delaware River watershed covers 13,539 square miles of land and water, running from the Catskills in New York through Pennsylvania and New Jersey, ultimately emptying into the Delaware Bay. Despite its position in a major metropolitan corridor, the watershed is home to a remarkable variety of species and their habitats鈥攆rom mountainside cold-water streams to tidal salt marshes鈥攖hat are economically, ecologically and culturally important to the region. Urban and suburban waterways play a major role in the watershed鈥檚 communities, with headwaters in neighboring rural and agricultural areas. Grant projects are implemented across this variety of landscapes, serving to improve wildlife habitat and human communities, accelerate implementation of best practices, provide opportunities for people to engage with nature, and ultimately benefit water quality locally and for those downstream.
For more information on the bet365下载ios鈥檚 conservation work in the Delaware River Watershed, visit /northeast/delawareriver/
