The Virginia Environmental Endowment announced awards of nearly $250,000 to protect and improve the region’s natural resources and environment. When combined with matching funds, grants awarded by VEE since 1977 represent an investment of over $75 million in environmental improvements statewide.
“The Endowment is once again honored to partner with so many outstanding organizations focused on tangible water quality improvements, the restoration of the Chesapeake Bay, land conservation, and environmental literacy across our great Commonwealth and beyond,” said Joseph H. Maroon, Executive Director. “These grants will impact communities in Richmond, Hampton Roads, Southwest Virginia, the Shenandoah Valley, Williamsburg, the Middle Peninsula, the James River Basin and statewide.”
VEE GRANT AWARDS IN THE COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA
Improving Local Water Quality and the Chesapeake Bay
- Chesapeake Bay Commission: Support for a tri-state evaluation of policies and initiatives relating to keeping livestock out of streams ($5,000).
- Ducks Unlimited: Support for restoration of 1,500 acres of wetland habitat on public lands in Hampton Roads ($20,000).
- Upper Tennessee River Roundtable: Support for collaborative initiatives in the Clinch River Valley (Southwest Virginia) in water quality, and environmental education ($20,000).
Conserving Virginia Lands
- Chesapeake Conservancy: Support to develop interactive, high resolution web-mapping applications to facilitate the use of a precision land classification analysis for applying targeted conservation practices in the James River Basin. This grant also supports VEE’s focus on Improving Local Water Quality ($20,000).
- Williamsburg Land Conservancy: Support for the development of a video, and other tools, to introduce landowners in the Williamsburg area and Middle Peninsula to land conservation opportunities ($10,000).
Enhancing Environmental Literacy and Civic Engagement / Outreach
- Blue Sky Fund: Support to expand the Explorers Program, providing environmental experiential learning opportunities for third and fifth grade Richmond Public School students ($20,000).
- Elizabeth River Project: Support to train 100 teachers from 14 school systems in Hampton Roads in environmental literacy programs using the organization’s Learning Barge and urban nature park ($18,716).
- Chesapeake Bay Foundation: Support the advancement of systemic environmental education and literacy statewide ($25,000 Challenge Grant).
- Virginia Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts Educational Foundation: Support for the Youth Conservation Camp Program and to establish a pilot Youth Conservation Leadership Institute ($10,000).
- Virginia Conservation Legacy Fund: Support for new environmental education experiences at the Caverns at Natural Bridge ($15,000).
- Chesapeake Media Service: Support to enhance coverage of environmental issues focused on the Virginia portion of the Chesapeake Bay region ($10,000).
- Virginia Tech Master Naturalist Program: Support to improve environmental education and literacy in Virginia through the creation of a comprehensive and consistent curriculum for Virginia Master Naturalist volunteers statewide ($20,000).
In addition to grants awarded to Virginia-based projects, VEE will dedicate more than $50,000 to organizations in the Kanawha and Ohio River Valleys of Kentucky and West Virginia to support the protection and improvement of regional water quality.
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