PROVIDENCE – The Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council received an Environmental Protection Agency grant of $150,000 Wednesday after being selected as the fifth pilot watershed funded through the agency’s Southeast New England Program.
Funds from the grant will will support the council in increasing community capacity to improve river water quality, develop a community-centered climate resilience plan and implement a sustainable funding mechanism for stormwater management and maintenance of green- and gray-water systems.
“The WRWC is thrilled to be selected for a SNEP Pilot Watershed Initiative grant. This five-year investment will allow us to make deep connections and facilitate coordination among the seven communities WRWC serves,” Alicia Lehrer, executive director of the Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council, said in a statement. “We are poised to expand our K-12 educational programming watershed-wide, build flood resilience, improve water quality and connect people to the river through recreation programs. We will all take pride in making all of our water resources swimmable, fishable, healthy and accessible.”
The town of Charlestown was among the five watershed programs named by the EPA Wednesday and also received $150,000. Those funds will support an enhanced, integrated effort to address the impacts of excess nutrients from septic systems and stormwater on Greater Allen’s Cove and Ninigret Pond through installation of nitrogen-reducing septic systems and nature-based stormwater solutions. Project partners include the University of Rhode Island, the Salt Pond Coalition and Save The Bay Inc.
“I’m pleased to see [the] Woonasquatucket River selected for this Watershed Initiative pilot project. This initiative will help improve water quality, address pollution and boost climate resiliency,” said Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., who spearheaded the creation and funding of SNEP for Coastal Watershed Restoration. “Revitalizing this watershed will also help identify urban water quality issues, challenges and opportunities across several communities within the Woonasquatucket River watershed.”
With the funding of this fifth pilot watershed, total EPA funding is expected to reach about $3.8 million across the five projects with an additional $1.3 million in matching funds over the next five years.
The three additional pilot watersheds include:
- $149,998 to the Buzzards Bay Coalition.
- $149,995 to the University of New Hampshire Stormwater Center.
- $150,000 to the Barnstable Clean Water Coalition.
