River Network, a Portland, Oregon-based national river and watershed conservation organization, has awarded the County a $15,000 Watershed Assistance Grant (WAG). The county accepted the grant on behalf of the Black Creek Watershed Coalition as a means to protect and restore their watershed.

The goal of this inter-municipal Coalition will be to work cooperatively to oversee development of a Black Creek Watershed Plan, designed to protect Black Creek water quality and to address flooding issues," said Monroe County Executive Jack Doyle.

The grant will subsidize the cost to host a symposium on the Black Creek Watershed, publish a newsletter, create a web site, hire a consultant to write a State of the Basin Report and gather data for the report. The report will be the basis on which a Black Creek Watershed Plan is developed.

The Black Creek Watershed Coalition will represent the interests of all or part of the towns of Bethany, Batavia, Stafford, Byron and Bergen in Genesee County and the towns of Riga, Ogden, Wheatland and Chili in Monroe County. The watershed also extends slightly into Clarendon, Orleans County and Middlebury, Wyoming County.

The WAG program is supported by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Awards ranged from $6,500 to $30,000. Collectively, 11 funded projects represent a geographically balanced mix of diverse, sustainable watershed partnerships utilizing conventional and innovative organizing methods.

The grant will be provided for one and one-half years and is subject to approval by the Monroe County Legislature at its March 12, 2002 meeting.