$12.5M funding awarded for watershed restoration

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation recently announced 30 Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund awards totaling $12.5 million. Grantees have committed nearly $17 million in match, for a total conservation impact of $29.3 million that will restore and protect our land and water resources.

These awards build on years of conservation and collaboration across the Delaware River Watershed, highlighting what’s possible when communities, local organizations, and partners work together from the headwaters to the estuary to protect and restore the watershed for people, wildlife, and communities.

“This $12.5 million investment will protect clean drinking water for 14.2 million people, restore critical habitat, and expand access to the outdoors across the Delaware River Watershed,” said Meagan Birkenmaier, Coalition for the Delaware River Watershed. “We’re proud that more than half of the funded projects are led by Coalition members, demonstrating the strength and impact of our network across the watershed.”

“The ongoing support from the DWCF allows the Academy of Natural Sciences to conduct important research into the ecology of the Delaware Basin. Their funding is key to our continuing efforts to understand and advise on the management of dams and fish populations in the Cooper River,” added Dr. David Keller, Director of the Fisheries Department at the Academy of Natural Sciences’ Patrick Center for Environmental Research.

“The Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund award is the cornerstone of efforts to restore an impaired stream channel within the South Branch of French Creek and the surrounding wetlands and floodplain beginning at the publicly accessible Thomas P. Bentley Nature Preserve,” said Bill Gladden, Executive Director of French & Pickering. “Support from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service will jump-start implementation of the most significant restoration project in our 59-year history. The project will serve as a demonstration for wildlife habitat improvement, increased floodplain resilience, and improved water quality along over 4,500 feet of the French Creek and the surrounding wetland and floodplain.”

Together, these efforts ensure that the Delaware River Watershed remains a thriving home for wildlife and a source of clean water and recreation for generations to come.

Grants were awarded through the Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund (DWCF), a program administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). The DWCF is funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to achieve the goals of the Delaware River Basin Conservation Act. Since 2018, the Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund has funded 270 projects that provide vital support to fish and wildlife, help support economic vitality, and contribute to quality of life through public access and outdoor recreation opportunities. For more information about the Delaware River Basin Restoration Program, log onto www.fws.gov/program/delaware-river-basin-restoration.