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South central Pa. water protection projects get a boost from the state

  • Rachel McDevitt
Snow covers the banks of the Conestoga River in Lancaster County on Nov. 24, 2019.

Ian Sterling for WITF

Snow covers the banks of the Conestoga River in Lancaster County on Nov. 24, 2019.

Thirteen water protection projects in south central Pennsylvania are getting $4.7 million in help from the state.

The money comes from Pennsylvania’s Growing Greener program, which helps communities restore waterways, clean up abandoned mines, and plug orphaned oil and gas wells.

The largest award in the region is going to the Little Conestoga Creek Foundation in Lancaster County, according to a news release from the Department of Environmental Protection. It plans to use $2.2 million for floodplain restoration along its namesake creek.

According to Lancaster Clean Water Partners, the foundation’s goal is to return the creek to how it was hundreds of years ago by restoring wetlands, which can support wildlife and reduce the risk of flash flooding. The project will also help lower runoff to the Chesapeake Bay.

Other projects benefiting from Growing Greener are Dauphin County’s Capital Area Greenbelt streambank restoration, and York County’s West Branch Codorus Creek Stream Restoration.

More than $18 million from the program is being awarded this year statewide.

The full list of projects in the south central region is below.

Berks

  • Berks County Conservation District: Little Cacoosing Creek Restoration, $374,128
  • Fleetwood Borough: Willow Creek Streambank Restoration Phase 1, $145,438 

Blair

  • Altoona Water Authority: Kittanning Run Restoration Plan Assessment, $50,537

Dauphin

  • Capital Area Greenbelt Association: Spring Creek Ivey Apartments Site Streambank Restoration Project, $230,150 
  • Borough of Penbrook: Penbrook Borough Stormwater Management Basin, $280,000 

Franklin

  • Franklin County Conservation District: West Branch Conococheague Tributary Floodplain Restoration—Design and Permitting, $117,500 

Huntingdon

  • The Trust for Tomorrow: Tuscarora Creek Bank Stabilization Project, $88,510 

Lancaster

  • Little Conestoga Creek Foundation: Little Conestoga Blue-Green Corridor Floodplain Restoration, $2,246,580 
  • Little Conestoga Watershed Alliance: Jackson and River Drive Floodplain Restoration Project, $113,000

Lebanon

  • South Londonderry Township: Killinger Creek Stream Stabilization and Riparian Forest Buffer, $260,000
  • North Cornwall Township, Cleona Borough: Quittapahilla Creek Floodplain Restoration, $110,500

York

  • York County Rail Trail Authority: Oil Creek Floodplain Restoration—Design and Permitting, $135,000
  • York County Conservation District: West Branch Codorus Creek Stream Restoration Phase 2, $563,365

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