Feb
“This year, two themes emerged in the applications we reviewed,” said Jim Ford, a member of the review committee, “and they were Walloon Lake and stormwater runoff.”
Melrose Township, located in Charlevoix County, received its first grant award from the fund for a project to improve stormwater management at the Third Street road end in in Walloon Lake Village. A grant award will support the design and installation of a rain garden at the road end, creating a public demonstration project that could be replicated at other road ends surrounding Walloon Lake. The entirety of Walloon Lake is within the Little Traverse Bay watershed.
Stormwater runoff will be the focus of the Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council’s project to research and identify potential policy options to help local governments manage stormwater runoff. The project aims to work closely with local officials at the county, municipal and township levels to gauge interest in moving forward with stormwater solutions.
The Walloon Lake Association and Conservancy (WLAC) will address aquatic invasive species in Walloon Lake with its grant award. WLAC will install a permanent boat wash station at Jones Landing, a popular boat launch on Walloon Lake. Use of the station by boaters coming in and out of Walloon Lake prevents the spread of aquatic invasive species by removing plant and animal particles.
Grants from the Little Traverse Bay Protection and Restoration Fund are awarded annually to eligible organizations addressing the priorities outlined in our region’s Little Traverse Bay Watershed Management Plan. In the eleven years since the fund’s inception, over $428,000 has been awarded to organizations controlling and preventing invasive species, managing stormwater runoff, and much more. Overseeing the fund’s grant recommendations is a volunteer committee comprised of Jenni Attie, Frank Ettawageshik, Jim Ford, and Doug Larson.