The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation has awarded the City of Waynesboro $100,000 in grant money from the Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund for a project entitled “Retrofitting Our Way to a Healthy South River.”
The City will work with several partners during the course of the multifaceted project including the Center for Watershed Protection, Central Shenandoah Planning District Commission, the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.
The grant money will fund the planning, design and construction phase of a 2.1 acre stormwater detention basin retrofit located in the Pelham East Subdivision. The design and construction work for this basin will be completed by private contractors. The primary goal of the project is to reduce sediment and nutrient loads in the stormwater runoff from 89 acres of residential neighborhoods located upstream of the facility. The reductions in these pollutants will go towards achieving goals in pollutant reductions that are spelled out in the South River and Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load Implementation Plans. Further excavation of this detention basin should also provide some relief in reducing downstream flooding in areas such as Jefferson Park.
“This is a great project for Waynesboro,” said Engineering Technician Trafford McRae. “It will show our citizens how to reduce society‟s impact on water resources and further our connection to the South River, which is one of Waynesboro‟s greatest assets.”
The grant request included provisions in the construction phase for not only the excavation, re-grading and planting of the Pelham East detention basin, but also for the creation of a demonstrational rain garden. Additionally, the grant provides training for City staff including a CSPDC workshop for identifying innovative stormwater funding opportunities. Work on the detention basin plans should begin sometime early next year with public input into the final design.
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation awarded a total of $10.9 million in grants this year as part of the Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Fund. The funding will support approximately 55 projects throughout the Chesapeake Bay Watershed; other projects funded in the Shenandoah Valley include agricultural Best Management Practices and similar stormwater projects.
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