Soil & Water official outlines H2Ohio ditch‑conversion grant for Ford Creek and warns of landowner impacts

Roblin Denning of Knox County Soil & Water presented details of an Ohio Department of Agriculture H2Ohio water‑quality grant on March 5, describing how the program would fund ditch conversions intended to trap sediment and retain nutrients and outlining next steps for landowner outreach.

Denning described two accepted conservation designs: a two‑stage trapezoidal ditch or an overwide self‑forming ditch. He said the designs are intended to slow flow, reduce bank erosion and increase in‑channel benches that trap sediment. "Their research indicates that those do a good job at trapping excess sediment and some nutrient retention from the watershed areas," Denning said.

Denning identified North Branch of Ford Creek and a Ford Creek reach as the two local county ditches that best fit the grant’s eligibility. He said the grant is reimbursement‑based: the county (and its contractors) would front construction costs and request reimbursement after final construction acceptance. On timing, Denning said a best‑case start could be this fall with an approximate eight‑month construction window for a project such as North Branch.

On costs, commissioners and Denning discussed rough estimates. Denning said current per‑foot construction discussions were "at today's prices" of about $85 to $100 per foot for excavation, seeding and related work. He and commissioners discussed example totals mentioned in the meeting — roughly $800,000 for North Branch of Ford Creek and "close to $2 million" for the larger Ford Creek reach — and stressed that the county would seek reimbursement after construction completion.

Denning cautioned that some landowners may object because the conservation designs widen channels; in a few locations that could amount to several feet up to about 10 feet of additional width and could reduce developable or farmable land. He stressed that for North Branch the ditch would remain on the county’s maintenance program and county crews would continue mowing and spraying; by contrast, Ford Creek was not currently on maintenance, and Denning said if the commissioners wanted Ford Creek added to maintenance after reconstruction it would require a public hearing under the Ohio Revised Code.

Denning said eligible grant expenses include excavation, spoil removal, seeding, outlet replacement and hauling spoil; ODA excludes road crossings and large culvert replacements from eligible reimbursement. He added that Soil & Water would likely perform design and bid work with internal surveying costs covered by the office as a normal function, while hauling spoil and construction would be eligible for grant reimbursement.

Next steps: Denning said staff will mail notices to the roughly 12 landowners and convene a local meeting at the Soil & Water office to gauge buy‑in; he said the grant application and final county decisions will depend on landowner support and commissioner approval. "If there's buy‑in from the landowners, then I think it's a good deal," Denning said.

The board did not vote on design or funding at the March 5 meeting; commissioners asked staff to continue outreach and to prepare cost and timing details for future consideration.