WASHINGTON — The Macatawa Area Coordinating Council has been awarded a $190,000 grant to protect the Macatawa Watershed.
The grant will be used by the council for a project that will encourage prolonged use to cover crops and increase installation of grassed waterways.
It was announced by Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Zeeland, on Monday.
“This grant also highlights the impact and the importance the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative continues to have locally on protecting both the ecology as well as the economy of the Great Lakes,” Huizenga said. “It is projects like this that work to preserve the Great Lakes for future generations.”
Darren Nichols, the executive director of the Great Lakes Commission, congratulated the council for being awarded the grant and thanked Huizenga for his support of the initiative.
“This project demonstrates the power of the GLRI to generate critical economic and environmental improvements for communities throughout the region,” Nichols said.
This year, 13 projects totaling over $2.2 million were funded by the Great Lakes Sediment and Nutrient Reduction Program to install on-the-land practices to reduce phosphorus runoff and sedimentation into the Great Lakes.
Funding for this program is provided by the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative under a cooperative agreement between the Great Lakes Commission and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.
