LCBP Awards $4.4 Million to Local Groups and Municipalities  

Grand Isle, VT – The Lake Champlain Basin Program recently awarded over $4.4 million in grants to communities and organizations in New York, Québec, and Vermont to improve the future of the Lake Champlain watershed. The LCBP has awarded nearly $20 million to over 1,630 projects in New York, Vermont and Québec through competitive grant programs since 1992. 

Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), who has long championed funding of work to protect and restore Lake Champlain, now as Chairman of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee, said: “I’m impressed by the organizations, municipalities, schools, businesses, and state agencies that are committed to improving Lake Champlain’s future. The Lake Champlain Basin Program distributes federal dollars to address many watershed issues, including reducing phosphorus and slowing the spread of aquatic invasive species, while also supporting cultural heritage efforts throughout the entire watershed.” 

“We applaud the more than 130 grant recipients representing organizations that continue to implement watershed projects during the COVID pandemic,” said Dr. Eric Howe, Director of the Lake Champlain Basin Program and the Champlain Valley National Heritage Partnership. “These partnerships improve the Lake Champlain ecosystem for future generations and preserve and interpret our heritage for both residents and visitors.” 

“Lake Champlain is one of Vermont’s greatest treasures and it must be protected,” said Senator Sanders. “I am pleased with the work that the Lake Champlain Basin Program and many local partners have done to get federal dollars on the ground and working to improve the health of the Lake Champlain ecosystem. Together, we will continue the fight to safeguard Lake Champlain, especially as we face the existential threat of climate change, for our communities today and for generations to come.” 

Congressman Peter Welch of Vermont commented, “Lake Champlain is one of New England’s natural treasures, valued for its recreational assets, and treasured for its historical and cultural significance. With these grants, local partners can continue the important work of safeguarding Lake Champlain for future generations.” 

 
Congresswoman Stefanik said, “Congratulations to each of the New York communities that received grant money from the Lake Champlain Basin Program. I am proud to advocate for the environmental interests of the North Country and deliver this critical funding that gives our communities the ability to research, protect, and maintain the Lake Champlain watershed.” 

“EPA New England is thrilled to be a partner in the protection and restoration of Lake Champlain,” said EPA New England Regional Administrator David W. Cash. “EPA’s funding for the Lake Champlain Basin Program will be used to support local community projects that turn improvement plans into reality – a reality that restores and protects the lake’s water and ecosystem quality, and improves the everyday lives of people who depend on, who cherish, and who plan for the future of this remarkable resource.” 

“These grants will support critical projects that help make Lake Champlain and its basin cleaner and more accessible for all communities in New York, Vermont and Québec,” said EPA Regional Administrator Lisa F. Garcia from EPA Region 2 based in New York. “EPA is proud to support the many efforts that improve water quality and habitat in Lake Champlain. We also applaud the ongoing work to expand education about the lake and create a more inclusive stewardship for diverse communities across the watershed.” 

“As we celebrate 75 years of NEIWPCC, 30 years of the Lake Champlain Basin Program, and 50 years of the federal Clean Water Act, we are celebrating more than just the passage of time. We are celebrating the partnerships we have created together toward fulfilling our shared missions of clean water. NEIWPCC is proud to support the Basin Program and its partners as they look to complete a wide-array of additional localized watershed work. We cannot make great strides without the local, regional, and federal efforts together,” said Susan Sullivan, Executive Director, NEIWPCC. 

Howe added, “Local grants leverage federal dollars with local dollars, staff or volunteer time and landowner contributions. Nearly every project that receives LCBP funding recruit’s volunteers that either participate in the project or help interpret the project to the public. Homeowners can receive technical assistance from watershed groups to assess their property for stormwater issues, stewards identify aquatic invasive species and remove them from boats and trailers, and volunteers help visitors learn about the rich history of the region. The LCBP relies on teams of experts from New York, Québec and Vermont each year to review and rank our grant applications, making recommendations to our Executive and Steering Committee members.” 

The 136 grants awarded this year will support projects across many grant categories. 2022 LCBP Grant project examples include: 

• Large Education & Outreach – e.g., Champlain College will develop an experiential learning module “Protecting our Waters” for elementary school students and their communities. $44,413 
• Small Education & Outreach – e.g., The Lake Champlain Community Sailing Center will expand their diversity access initiative which seeks to mitigate the historic, social and economic barriers to lake-based recreation and education experienced by children by identify as Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) by providing up to four weeks of youth camp free of charge to approximately 50 campers. $10,000. 
• Organizational Support – e.g., The Ausable River Association will increase their organizational capacity to improve research on the Ausable river. $4,000 
• Clean Water – Planning – e.g., Lake Champlain-Lake George Regional Planning Board will update information and projects in the 2018 Lake Champlain Non-Point Source Pollution Subwatershed Assessment and Management Plan to capture new demographic and monitoring data and add new projects and non-point source load reduction information. $47,785 
• Clean Water – Small Implementation – e.g., The Lake St. Catherine Association will continue their Lake Wise stewardship program and build partnerships with Castleton University students and staff. $24,970 

• Clean Water – Large Implementation – e.g., The City of South Burlington will install a gravel wetland to treat stormwater runoff from five acres of impervious area before it reaches Potash Brook, a water quality impaired stream. $125,000 
• Healthy Ecosystems – Habitat & Native Species Conservation – e.g., Franklin County Natural Resources Conservation District will conduct a multi-year habitat monitoring study at the Johnson’s Mill Dam removal site in Bakersfield, VT. $25,000 
• Healthy Ecosystems – Aquatic Invasive Species Spread Prevention and Management – e.g., OBVBM will acquire a boat wash and decontamination unit for Selby Lake in the Missisquoi Basin in Quebec. $15,000 
• Technical grants – e.g., Stone Environmental, Inc. will develop a comprehensive binational phosphorus mass balance model for Missisquoi Bay. $300,000 
• Cultural Heritage – e.g., The Lake George Historical Association Museum, thanks to a Champlain Valley National Heritage Partnership Collections Grant, will upgrade, expand, and modernize its “Called by the Water” exhibit with updated water quality information and interpretation that marks the 50th anniversary of the Clean Water Act. $7,500 

• Additional Grants – e.g., Project 986 Consulting will support the Lake Champlain Basin Program’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programming and planning process. $15,000 

These grants support projects that advance the goals of the long-term Lake Champlain management plan Opportunities for Action (plan.lcbp.org). These grants utilize funds awarded to NEIWPCC on behalf of the Lake Champlain Basin Program by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, and the National Park Service. For more information about LCBP’s local grant program, visit LCBP 2021 Grant Award Summary 

For further information, contact the Lake Champlain Basin Program, 54 West Shore Road, Grand Isle, VT at (802) 372-3213 / (800) 468-5227 or visit www.lcbp.org.