The Chesapeake Bay Trust is pleased to announce that the Watershed Assistance Grant Program is now open

The Chesapeake Bay Trust and Maryland Departments of Natural Resources (DNR) and Environment (MDE) are seeking applicants to the Watershed Assistance Grant Program. This grant opportunity is available to local governments and non-profit organizations in Maryland for assistance with the earliest phases of watershed restoration projects.

Two tracks are offered within the Watershed Assistance Grant Program: the Project Design track and the Watershed Planning and Program Development track.

• The Design Track provides funding to create buildable designs for green infrastructure projects and for the associated permits
  • Examples: bioretention cells, large-scale rain gardens, other low impact development stormwater techniques, stream restoration, wetland and marsh creation, and any of the suite of agricultural water quality best management practices.
• The Watershed Planning and Program Development Track provides funding for specific projects identified in local planning efforts such as Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP) strategies and associated Two-year Milestones submitted to MDE by local jurisdictions or anticipated to be submitted to MDE.
  • Examples: watershed planning (watershed assessment phase and watershed action plan phase), projects addressing policy development or enhancement, organizational enhancement, or financing strategies.

Funding requests will generally be less than $75,000. Stream restoration design projects may request up to $200,000. The deadline to submit proposals is Thursday, August 13, 2020 at 4 PM. Please visit the Watershed Assistance Grant Program webpage for more information about the program. For project guidance, please contact Emily Stransky at EStransky@cbtrust.org.

In addition, program partners will be holding virtual workshops on June 18^th, 2020 at 2pm and July 16^th, 2020 at 6pm. The workshops will include an introduction to the Watershed Assistance Grant Program, tips on improving proposal competitiveness, and an opportunity to ask questions. Both workshops will have the same content focus; therefore, interested attendees need only attend one workshop. Please RSVP here: https://forms.gle/po6gF4yMaBFBumgy9. A Zoom link to access the workshops will be emailed to those that RSVP.

The Trust looks forward to hearing your project ideas!