Water District receives second federal grant for watershed protection
This is a before photo of a 2016 Clean Water Grant project. An eight-foot culvert wasn’t producing desired results because it was too small. The stream began cutting its way through the road and carrying dirt downstream to Adams Pond. Courtesy photo
The after photo shows a stone ford built using Clean Water Grant funds at the crossing, This allowed stream water to move across the road through the rocks and allowed vehicles passage over the road. Courtesy photo
This is a before photo of a 2016 Clean Water Grant project. An eight-foot culvert wasn’t producing desired results because it was too small. The stream began cutting its way through the road and carrying dirt downstream to Adams Pond. Courtesy photo
The after photo shows a stone ford built using Clean Water Grant funds at the crossing, This allowed stream water to move across the road through the rocks and allowed vehicles passage over the road. Courtesy photo
For the Boothbay Region Water District, job No. 1 is protecting the Adams Pond and Knickerbocker Lake Watershed from erosion and stormwater runoff. And in the past three years, BRWD has received a big assist from the Department of Environmental Protection with two 319 Clean Water Grants totaling over $87,000. In December, the district received a $44,000 grant to fix a section on Pine Woods Road plagued by flooding after a heavy rain. A major stream which runs into Adams Pond is nearby and erosion results in dirt entering the watershed.
The road will be rebuilt along with stormwater drainage improvements. The 319 Grant is a 60/40 split between federal and local monies. The town of Boothbay and BRWD will use labor costs as part of their split. Boothbay’s public works department will provide labor. The district’s contribution will be to provide system design, according BRWD Natural Resources Program Manager Sue Mello. The district expects to begin work on Pine Woods Road later this year. The new grant will fund repairs on 10 other 2018 projects.
The previous 319 Clean Water Grant occurred in 2016. The district received $43,300 for fixing problems identified in its 2014 watershed survey. Most identified sites were near roads or in culverts. From the grant, Boothbay’s public works department received $28,000 for fixing sites on town property including sites associated with Back River Road’s culverts. The water district used remaining funds for fixing erosion problems on land owned by it or on private property.
The 2016 319 Grant funded repairs on 20 projects. All but two of the proposed projects were completed. The remaining projects were delayed by last fall’s bad weather. Mello expects the remaining two will be finished this spring.
BRWD has also received funding from several state and federal sources since 2014. In the past four years, BRWD has received $218,440 from all state and federal grants. The district’s match, which includes labor, accounted for $114,850. Since 2014, the district received a Center for Disease Control (CDC) Water Protection Grant for $45,000. These funds were used for public education, repaired 11 Adams Pond watershed non-point source pollution sites and cost share for 12 lake-friendly (state) grants, and research and sampling costs.
An $85,630, Maine Natural Resource Conservation Grant bought 70 acres of high-priority watershed land for conservation and restoring damaged streams. Between 2015 and 2018, the district awarded $13,710 to 12 watershed property owners in Lake Friendly Grants. The program provided funds for property owners to fix non-point source pollution sites on their property through remediation work, vegetative buffers, or new septic systems. According to BRWD, property owners matched their grants with $104,195 in matching funds.
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