Chesapeake Bay Program A Watershed Partnership © ( Sffij % 1 if % ,-T^^0 The Chesapeake Bay Targeted Watersheds Grant Program (TWGP) provides financial and technical support to projects that expand the collective knowledge on the most innovative, sustainable and cost- effective strategies for reducing nutrient pollution within specific tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay. The TWGP is a partnership among the Chesapeake Bay Program, the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation and the Environmental Protection Agency. Chesapeake Bay Targeted Watersheds Grant Program 2007 Targeted Watershed Grants Project Descriptions Crop Management Projects Innovative Cropping Practices in the Shenandoah River Watershed Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Shenandoah River Watershed, Virginia Targeted Watersheds Grant: $400,000 Partnership Contributions: $317,259 The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University will demonstrate the potential for continuous no-till practices to be integrated with other innovative cropping practices to maximize reductions in nutrient runoff to the Shenandoah River and ultimately the Chesapeake Bay. The project will integrate continuous no-till with innovative technologies such as no-till manure injection, sensor-based precision fertilizer applications, and innovative cropping systems with continuous cover (never fallow). The project includes a significant monitoring program to establish the benefits of these practices to surface and groundwater quality. Implementation of the integrated, innovative cropping practices will be achieved through a farmer-to-farmer participatory mentoring network and "train the trainer" education events. Manure & Livestock Management Reducing Nutrient Loads from Equine Operations Maryland Department of Agriculture Frederick, Baltimore and Carroll Counties, Maryland Targeted Watersheds Grant: $700,000 Partner Contributions: $281,000 The Maryland Department of Agriculture will work with small horse farms to reduce nutrient runoff to the Chesapeake Bay by an estimated 105,701 pounds of nitrogen and 13,978 pounds of phosphorous. Horses outnumber dairy cows and beef cattle in Maryland, yet horse operations often are ineligible or unaware of agriculture conservation programs. Through this project, equine specialists will provide outreach and technical support tailored to small horse farmers. The project will include the implementation of 400 equine best management practices on 1,450 acres to improve manure and pasture management in strategic watersheds within the Chesapeake Bay. The project also will provide cost-share funding to implement the conservation practices on those equine operations that do not meet eligibility criteria for federal or state cost-share programs. Project partners will include Soil Conservation Districts, the Maryland Horse Outreach Workgroup, the Maryland Horse Industry Board, the University of Maryland, Extension Horse Specialist, and Natural Resource Conservation Service, USD A. -more- ------- ChesajjeakeJia^Tar2eted^Vatershed_GrantsJ>rojectDescri]3tions Page^ Conestoga Watershed Manure Composting Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Inc. Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Targeted Watersheds Grant: $800,000 Partnership Contributions: $751,000 The Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Inc. will coordinate the removal of 40,000 pounds of nitrogen and 35,000 pounds of phosphorus from entering the Conestoga River by implementing a diversified manure composting system in the watershed. The project includes a comprehensive marketing analysis of end users for the compost. Two such uses include using the compost to restore 385 acres of Abandoned Mine Land, and a partnership for use by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. It is estimated that about 100,000 tons of raw poultry manure will be composted in the two-year grant period, resulting in an annual estimated land application reduction of 2.8 million pounds of nitrogen and 5 million pounds of phosphorus. This project will accelerate nutrient reduction targets in Pennsylvania's Tributary Strategies, while restoring Abandoned Mine Lands, furthering Pennsylvania's utilization of bio-based energy generation, and increasing farm profitability. Project partners will include Wenger's Feed Mill, Inc., TerraGro Inc., the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, the Pennsylvania Environmental Council, Penn State University, and Lancaster County Municipalities. Stream Fencing Pilot for Reducing Nutrient Loads Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Rockingham and Augusta Counties, Virginia Targeted Watersheds Grant: $800,000 Partnership Contributions: $280,400 The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University will develop, implement, and evaluate an adaptive stream fencing pilot project to reduce nutrient loads in the Shenandoah River basin, including 540,000 pounds of sediment and 120,000 pounds of nitrogen. The project will work with farmers who have not previously participated in fencing programs to identify barriers to participation. A community-based approach including educational materials and outreach programs will be used to identify barriers and encourage the adoption of stream fencing practices that address local concerns while also meeting water quality goals. The project will install a total of 30,000 feet of stream fencing. An intensive monitoring program will be used to provide sound science-based estimates, ensuring cost effectiveness and efficiency of the pilot project. The efforts from this project will have very broad implications and applicability throughout the Chesapeake Bay in the many areas where livestock contribute to nutrient, bacteria, and sediment loads. Urban/Suburban Stormwater Management Watts Branch Watershed Restoration Project District of Columbia Department of the Environment Washington, DC Targeted Watersheds Grant: $500,000 Partnership Contributions: $2,150,600 -more- ------- Chesapeake Bay Targeted Watershed Grants Project Descriptions Page 3 The District of Columbia Department of the Environment will restore 1.75 miles of urban stream and 28 acres of riparian buffer through stream corridor restoration, and three Low Impact Development stormwater control retrofits. The project's comprehensive watershed approach will demonstrate reductions of nutrient and sediment loads to the Anacostia River and the Chesapeake Bay, including the removal 30,000 pounds of sediment. This project will serve as a model for urban watershed restoration by utilizing a combination of natural stream channel restoration, an innovative social marketing campaign, low cost non-point source pollution reduction techniques, and comprehensive in-stream monitoring documenting the pollution reduction benefits of stream restoration. Project partner include the District Department of the Environment, the District Department of Transportation, the District Parks and Recreation, the District Water and Sewer Authority, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington Parks and People, and the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation. Extreme BMP Makeover Center for Watershed Protection James River Basin, Virginia Targeted Watersheds Grant: $605,000 Partnership Contributions: $266,400 The Center for Watershed Protection will work with the local governments in the James River Basin to improve and accelerate the implementation of the proven, most effective stormwater management practices. The project will install 150 best management practices to improve nutrient reduction, which will reduce nutrient runoff to the James River by an estimated 1,890 pounds of nitrogen and 575 pounds of phosphorus. The project will result in the dissemination of a stormwater design manual to 800 communities in the Chesapeake Bay region and improved capability of local stormwater program staff to install more cost-effective, sustainable, and maintainable practices in the James River watershed and throughout the Chesapeake watershed. Project partners include the Virginia Department of Natural Resources, the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission, and the James River Association. Market- Based Incentives Market Based Approach to Nutrient Reduction Protected Harvest Lancaster County, PA and Rockingham County, VA Targeted Watersheds Grant: $800,000 Partnership Contributions: $335,180 Protected Harvest will establish a third-party dairy certification program that provides premium pricing to dairy farmers who adopt conservation practices that minimize nutrient runoff to the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. The program will be demonstrated in two intensive dairy communities — Lancaster County, PA and Shenandoah Valley, VA - and will reduce nutrient runoff by an estimated 86,400 pounds of nitrogen and 81,600 pounds of phosphorus. Through a collaborative standard-setting process, producers, processors, academics, environmentalists and other stakeholders will work collaboratively to develop sustainable production standards and the accompanying certification program. Protected Harvest will conduct the third party certification, as well as market research and development. The end result will be a sustainable, market-driven approach to reducing -more- ------- Chesapeake Bay Targeted Watershed Grants Project Descriptions Page 4 nutrient runoff from dairy farms in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Project partners include Environmental Defense, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Pennsylvania State University, TeamAg Inc., Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission, Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Technical University, Shenandoah Valley Soil and Water Conservation District, Virginia State Dairymen's Association, Dairy Farmer's of America, and Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. Meeting Regional Goals through Local Benefits The Conservation Fund Jefferson and Berkeley Counties, West Virginia Targeted Watersheds Grant: $400,000 Partnership Contributions: $262,000 The Conservation Fund will reduce nutrient and sediment runoff entering Rockymarsh Run - a tributary to the Potomac River and ultimately the Chesapeake Bay — by an estimated 300 tons of sediment, 15,000 pounds of nitrogen and 1900 pounds of phosphorous. This project will work with private land owners to restore and protect riparian buffers, implement Low Impact Development practices on newly developed land, and pump out and maintain failing septic systems. The water quality benefits associated with these practices will be quantified and marketed to the local wastewater treatment plant as offsets. The project will have the added local benefit of restoring four miles of native Eastern brook trout habitat. The marketing materials and economic analysis for the project will demonstrate the potential for offsets and water quality trading to reduce nutrient and sediment loading in multiple watersheds in the West Virginia Eastern. Partners include the West Virginia University Water Research Institute, Trout Unlimited, the West Virginia Brook Trout Conservation Group, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, the West Virginia Conservation Agency, the West Virginia Bureau of Public Health, the Jefferson and Berkeley County Health Departments, the Corporation of Shepherdstown, and the Shepherdstown Water and Sanitary Boards. ------- |