Christina River Basin
EPA Watershed Initiative Grant (Phase VI)

OVERVIEW

The USEPA Watershed Initiative Grant Program was proposed in 2002 by the Bush
Administration to encourage successful community-based approaches to protect and restore the nation's watersheds. This competitive grant program provides needed resources to those watershed organizations whose restoration plans set clear goals and objectives with special consideration given to water quality monitoring, innovation, a public education component, and strong community support. The Christina Basin Clean Water Partnership is a wonderful example of partnerships in action working together to identify real problems in real places and fixing them.

In the 2003 selection process, the first year of funding in the WatershedInitiative Grant Program, the Christina Basin application was the highest ranked application from over 170 submittals. This impressive milestone and the award of $1 million in Federal grant funds was a testimony to the multi-state, multi-organizational effort that is working diligently to improve the water quality conditions in the Christina Basin. At stake is the health of an environmentally and economically significant residential, agricultural, and industrial watershed that provides numerous recreational opportunities and serves as a primary source of drinking water for many of its over 500,000 residents.

The Christina Basin Clean Water Partnership received the USEPA Watershed Initiative Grant for project period October 2003 through October 2006. The Grant spans three years and will be used to provide a sustained, measurable reduction in nonpoint source runoff from land areas and facilities in the Christina Basin. Reductions in nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium), and sediment are prioritized pollutants that will be addressed by both grant recipients, Pennsylvania and Delaware. A variety of BMP tools will be used to accomplish these reductions. However, there is no time to rest. With the implementation push provided by the Watershed Initiative Grant and the pending completion of the high flow Total Maximum Daily Load study in early 2005, the partners and residents of the Christina Basin must have a renewed commitment to achieve the water quality management goals established for the Christina Basin. The following details the projects and activities implemented throughout the watershed as part of the Christina Basin USEPA Watershed Initiative Grant.

Christina Basin Clean Water Partnership Awards Ceremony: A Celebration of Success

A Map of the Christina Basin Targeted Watershed Grant, Best Management Practices