Chagrin Watershed Partners receives grant

U.S. Forest Service awards Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funds

The Willoughby-based Chagrin Watershed Partners, Inc. is among the recipients of federal Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funds recently awarded from the U.S. Forest Service.

Chagrin Watershed Partners received $215,933 on behalf of Central Lake Erie Basin Collaborative. The funds were awarded to plant 2,620 native trees and shrubs across seven sites covering approximately 19.5 intercept 579,012.035 gallons of rainfall yearly in Ohio’s Central Lake Erie Basin watershed, according to the agency.

The native trees and shrugs will be planted along 4,760 linear feet of stream in six communities: Mentor, Richmond Heights, Mayfield Village, Lyndhurst, Cleveland and Rocky River.

Chagrin Watershed Partners was one of six Ohio-based entities to receive funds through the U.S. Forest Service. In total, Ohio received more than $1 million in grants.

“I’m pleased to announce these GLRI grants from the U.S. Forest Service and proud to see over $1 million go directly to restoration projects across the Buckeye State.” — U.S. Rep. Dave Joyce in a statement

The others receiving grants were the Western Reserve Land Conservancy ($110,035); Cleveland Metroparks ($193,500); the Ohio Department of Natural Resources ($113,711); the Metropolitan Park District of the Toledo Area ($200,000); and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History ($187,468).

“I’m pleased to announce these GLRI grants from the U.S. Forest Service and proud to see over $1 million go directly to restoration projects across the Buckeye State,” U.S. Rep. Dave Joyce said in a statement. “Having lived my entire life here in Northeast Ohio off the coast of Lake Erie, I know how these local efforts help us protect and preserve the Great Lakes while simultaneously investing in our communities. I applaud the U.S. Forest Service for recognizing the importance of these local restoration proj

ects and I look forward to seeing these projects not only enhance the Great Lakes ecosystem, but also provide jobs and promote the health and economic benefits of trees and natural areas in our communities.”

Joyce, who is a co-chair of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Great Lakes Task Force said Ohio’s six projects will together: plant a combined total of more than 170,620 trees, shrubs and plant plugs; intercept more than half a million gallons of rainfall yearly in Ohio’s Central Lake Erie Basin watershed; help restore a Cuyahoga River Area of Concern in the Euclid Creek watershed; prevent stormwater runoff in high-risk Cleveland neighborhoods; and create 44 acres of new forests within the Maumee River watershed in Lake Erie’s western basin.

Joyce