NEWS RELEASE
CHIPPEWA LUCE MACKINAC CONSERVATION DISTRICT
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The Chippewa Luce Mackinac Conservation District (CLMCD) is pleased to announce they have been awarded a $522,703 grant from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) through the Clean Michigan Initiative Nonpoint Source Pollution Control Fund and Section 319 of the Federal Clean Water Act for continued cleanup efforts for the Munuscong River Watershed.
Funding under the Munuscong River Watershed Conserving Our Waters Partnership grant will help reduce nutrient loading from six agricultural sites within the watershed as well as facilitate the replacement of a road stream crossing with the Chippewa County Road Commission, protect over 10,500 feet of Munuscong River stream banks, plant over 3,500 native trees and shrubs, and make updates and improvements to the Munuscong River Watershed Plan.
CLMCD is currently finalizing its contract withEGLE with work to begin in September 2022. A full time Watershed Technician Position will be supported through grant funds to facilitate the implementation of grant activities. Additional funding and activities will be applied for to continue restoration efforts within the Munuscong River Watershed and other watersheds in the Eastern Upper Peninsula.
“We are very excited to have been awarded this funding from the Michigan Department of Environment Great Lakes, and Energy. CLMCD has been working within the watershed for over 10 years to help improve water quality and this grant was nearly a five-year process to obtain with many local partners participating in our efforts.”
In 2020 CLMCD was awarded a $500,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) to reduce nutrient loading in the Munuscong River. Since then, additional funding sources from the U.S. Forest Service, EGLE, and project partners combined with this new award from EGLE brings the total investment to improving the water quality in the Munuscong River Watershed by CLMCD to over $1,396,700.
CLMCD is happy to partner with the Chippewa County Road Commission, LSSU Center for Freshwater Research & Education, Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians Environmental Department, Upper Peninsula Resource & Development Council, Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy to achieve the goals of this grant.
The Chippewa Luce Mackinac Conservation District is a local unit of state government located in Sault Ste Marie, MI. CLMCD is the largest Conservation District in the State of Michigan serving all of the Chippewa, Luce, and Mackinac County. CLMCD employs full time staff that can assist private landowners with their natural resources needs.
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