Gov. Wolf Announces Funding For 17 Stormwater Projects In 5 Chesapeake Bay Counties

Gov. Tom Wolf Thursday announced the approval of over $2.2 million in funding to support to 17 municipal stormwater projects in Pennsylvania’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed that will remove 396 pounds of phosphorous, 2,800 pounds of nitrogen, and almost 800,000 pounds of sediment from local waters.

“The convenience we all enjoy with pavement comes with a tangible cost: increased runoff pollution in our local waters,” said Gov. Wolf. “I’m pleased to support the municipalities—towns, cities, and other large land owners—striving to meet the stormwater challenge in Pennsylvania.”

The list of projects approved includes--

Blair County--

-- Altoona City: St. Therese of the Child Jesus rain garden phase 2 ($55,349)

-- Blair Township: Edgewood Drive stormwater basin retrofit ($100,000)

-- Duncansville Borough: Duncansville Memorial Park bioretention, rain gardens, and permeable pavement ($200,000)

Cumberland County--

-- Carlisle Borough: Urban stormwater park native wetland plantings ($200,000)

Lemoyne Borough: Streambank restoration at Harrisburg Academy ($176,700)

-- Mechanicsburg: Northside stormwater basin retrofit ($164,381)

Dauphin County--

-- Paxtang Borough: Paxtang Parkway rain garden ($72,000)

Lancaster County--

-- Denver Borough: Denver Memorial Park rain gardens and streambank restoration ($38,220)

-- East Lampeter Township: Mill Bridge Campground riparian buffer stream restoration ($199,610)

-- Mount Joy Borough: Rotary Park vegetation swale ($64,633) and Pink Alley stormwater basin retrofit ($40,422)

-- Lancaster Township: Kensington Club stormwater basin retrofit ($200,000)

-- Rapho Township: Lefever Road stormwater basin retrofit ($161,360)

York County--

-- Goldsboro Borough: Stream restoration between South York and Water Streets ($86,290)

-- Paradise Township: BMC Paradise Truss Plant retrofit ($142,082)

-- Spring Grove Borough: Campus Avenue stream restoration phase 1 ($185,000)

-- York: Memorial Park Poorhouse Run streambank restoration ($200,00)

DEP is ramping up its work on implementation of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit program, which incorporates more stringent stormwater management requirements.

About 1,000 municipalities around the state must meet new requirements; approximately 340 are in the 43 Pennsylvania counties in the Bay watershed.

“To make the greatest, most timely impact with our resources,” said Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Patrick McDonnell. “This funding targets projects in our Bay watershed counties with the highest pollutant loads. Collectively, the projects will remove 396 pounds of phosphorous, 2,800 pounds of nitrogen, and almost 800,000 pounds of sediment from local waters.”

Projects are funded through the EPA Chesapeake Bay Implementation Grants Program, a vital part of Pennsylvania’s progress in cleaning up its local waters and thereby benefiting the Bay.

Earlier, Secretary McDonnell acknowledged the projects in-person at an event at the York County Prison to showcase the county’s model approach to stormwater management.

The prison project—converting stormwater basins to bioretention basins—was one of 19 projects chosen last year for EPA grant funding. Led by the York County Planning Commission, it reflects the county’s outstanding teamwork approach to municipal stormwater management.

“The County of York and 43 municipalities are working together to clean up impaired streams through their MS4 [stormwater] permits,” said Felicia Dell, director of the York County Planning Commission. “Together we’ve developed a regional plan that identifies best management practices and collectively funds and constructs them. The municipalities should be lauded for their vision and spirit of cooperation.

For more information on Pennsylvania’s Chesapeake Bay efforts, visit DEP’s Phase III Chesapeake Bay Watershed Implementation Plan webpage.  Learn more about stormwater management, visit DEP’s MS4 Stormwater Program webpage.  To learn more about TMDLs, visit DEP’s TMDL Priorities and TMDL Plans webpages.