Adrian Daily Telegram: Grant to help Lenawee County farmers improve water quality
July 5, 2016
A federal grant will help farmers in portions of southern Lenawee County buy equipment to keep sediment and phosphorus from their fields out of the River Raisin.
The $200,000 federal grant to the Lenawee Conservation District was announced Tuesday by 7th District U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Tipton. He also announced a $199,998 grant to the Hillsdale Conservation District for a related program to reduce phosphorus and sediment entering the Tiffin River and Lake Erie.
"It's great to see Hillsdale and Lenawee conservation districts recognized for their important work to protect the health of our waterways and communities," said Walberg in a news release. "These grants also highlight the need to reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to continue protecting the Great Lakes, which are a vital economic and environmental asset for Michigan."
The grant will fund a strip-till program targeted for sections of southern Lenawee County in order to reduce soil erosion from farm fields, said River Raisin Watershed Council executive director Stephen May.
Strip-till is a practice that disturbs the soil only for seed rows, combining the advantages of conventional tilling with no-till soil protection, according to Michigan Department of Environmental Quality officials. The grant funding will help eligible farmers purchase strip-till equipment or retrofit no-till planters.
Sediment and phosphorus from Lenawee County fields contributes to algae in western Lake Erie. Sediment loading also is the main water quality issue in the River Raisin Watershed, according to a description of the strip-till program by the MDEQ. The focus is to be on the South Branch of the River Raisin, Black Creek and the Bear Swamp Creek of the River Raisin.
"If we can keep sediments on the fields," said May, "less nutrients will be going into Lake Erie."
Funding for this program is provided by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative under a cooperative agreement between the Great Lakes Commission and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service.
"Congratulations to both organizations for receiving this funding to protect water quality in the Great Lakes," said Tim Eder, executive director of the Great Lakes Commission. "This project is yet another example of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative generating important economic and environmental improvements in communities across the region."
The Great Lakes Commission's Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program strategically addresses polluting phosphorus and sediments from entering the Great Lakes Basin, Walberg's news release said. The program awards grants to non-federal agencies and non-profit organizations in priority watersheds throughout the region.
May said his organization is working with the Lenawee Conservation District on a number of projects to reduce sediment and nutrient levels in the river.
This article originally appeared in the July 2 edition of the Adrian Daily Telegram.
The $200,000 federal grant to the Lenawee Conservation District was announced Tuesday by 7th District U.S. Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Tipton. He also announced a $199,998 grant to the Hillsdale Conservation District for a related program to reduce phosphorus and sediment entering the Tiffin River and Lake Erie.
"It's great to see Hillsdale and Lenawee conservation districts recognized for their important work to protect the health of our waterways and communities," said Walberg in a news release. "These grants also highlight the need to reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative to continue protecting the Great Lakes, which are a vital economic and environmental asset for Michigan."
The grant will fund a strip-till program targeted for sections of southern Lenawee County in order to reduce soil erosion from farm fields, said River Raisin Watershed Council executive director Stephen May.
Strip-till is a practice that disturbs the soil only for seed rows, combining the advantages of conventional tilling with no-till soil protection, according to Michigan Department of Environmental Quality officials. The grant funding will help eligible farmers purchase strip-till equipment or retrofit no-till planters.
Sediment and phosphorus from Lenawee County fields contributes to algae in western Lake Erie. Sediment loading also is the main water quality issue in the River Raisin Watershed, according to a description of the strip-till program by the MDEQ. The focus is to be on the South Branch of the River Raisin, Black Creek and the Bear Swamp Creek of the River Raisin.
"If we can keep sediments on the fields," said May, "less nutrients will be going into Lake Erie."
Funding for this program is provided by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative under a cooperative agreement between the Great Lakes Commission and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service.
"Congratulations to both organizations for receiving this funding to protect water quality in the Great Lakes," said Tim Eder, executive director of the Great Lakes Commission. "This project is yet another example of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative generating important economic and environmental improvements in communities across the region."
The Great Lakes Commission's Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program strategically addresses polluting phosphorus and sediments from entering the Great Lakes Basin, Walberg's news release said. The program awards grants to non-federal agencies and non-profit organizations in priority watersheds throughout the region.
May said his organization is working with the Lenawee Conservation District on a number of projects to reduce sediment and nutrient levels in the river.
This article originally appeared in the July 2 edition of the Adrian Daily Telegram.
Issues:Local Issues