Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Environment Water Quality topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
RPC reports $1M‑per‑year clean water service provider work, seeks projects for phosphorus reduction
Summary
RPC staff said the commission’s clean water service provider work moves about $1 million a year through consultants and partners for projects to reduce phosphorus in Lake Champlain and that the commission was reappointed for another five-year term.
Commission staff updated members on the commission’s role as a Clean Water Service Provider (CWSP) and said the program accounts for roughly $1 million a year in work, most of which flows through the commission to consultants and implementation partners.
Staff described the CWSP as the regional conduit for projects that address phosphorus loading to Lake Champlain. Eligible projects discussed include floodplain reconnection, riparian plantings, gully and legacy forestry-road erosion remediation and other nonpoint-source actions. Staff stressed that some categories—municipal roads, stormwater sites already under permit, and agricultural fields covered by existing permits—are not eligible under the service‑provider funding because they are already subject to separate permitting pathways.
The commission reported it was reappointed as the regional CWSP for another five-year term and staff asked commission members and delegates to help identify implementers and projects; staff said there is ample funding available for projects but more candidate sites are needed. Staff noted prior recipients and partners involved in implementation, including the Vermont Land Trust and Lewis Creek Association.
Staff said the Basin Water Quality Council will review several applications later in the month, mostly for forestry-road projects, and that outreach assistance to identify and screen projects will be part of the commission's near-term work.
