Many exciting projects are happening within the Juniata Watershed.  This page will keep you informed and up to date about the grant funded project JCWP is working on.  

DCNR Lower Trail Feasibility
Juniata Clean Water Partnership has been awarded a DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Grant to conduct a feasibility study on the possibility of extending the Lower Trail (Rails to Trails) from Alfarata to Huntingdon Borough.  Partnering agencies on this project include Allegheny Ridge Corp., Southern Alleghenies Planning & Development Commission, Huntingdon County Planning Commission, Central PA Rails to Trails, Keystone Trail Association, Mid-State Trail Association.   The grant was awarded in August, 2007.  The grant deadline is December, 2010. 

DCNR Main Line Canal Education & Outreach  
In December, 2007, Juniata Clean Water Partnership was awarded a DCNR Community Conservation Partnership Program Grant to implement Greenways projects along the Main Line Canal Greenway in Blair, Huntingdon, Bedford, Juniata, Mifflin, and Perry Counties.  JCWP will be providing technical support to Counties and municipalities working on Greenways plans, provide general education about the importance of greenways, work to identify new trail access sites, work with Natural Biodiversity on invasive plant issues along the Main Line Canal Greenway, and provide environmental education in partnership with county conservation districts.  The grant period runs through December 31, 2010.

NFWF  Juniata Cooperative Weed Management Area
The Juniata Clean Water Partnership and Natural Biodiversity received a $49,000 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation in May, 2008, with matching funding grants from the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds, PA DCNR, and Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture to focus on noxious and invasive plant populations within the Juniata Watershed.  The grant funding allows for the development of a management plan, with a focus on prevention, early detection and rapid response, and on impacts upon sensitive plant communities, wild trout, and agricultural environments within the Juniata Watershed.  The project team will partner with municipalities and local conservation groups to form the Juniata Cooperative Weed Management Area (JCWMA) partnership to address invasive plant issues.  The grant ended June 30, 2010. The Strategic Management Plan is available for download here. 

DEP Tussey Mountain High School Stormwater Management
Tussey Mountain School District and JCWP were awarded a grant by DEP Growing Greener in March, 2008, to construct some Low Impact stormwater BMPs (best management practices) to help manage stormwater runoff on site instead of draining straight into Shoups Run, a tributary of the Raystown Branch of the Juniata River.  The specific projects funded by the grant include 18,178 square feet of porous pavement and two bioretention cells (rain gardens), each approximately 1600 square feet.   The porous pavement will installed adjacent to the new district office and be made from a special formula that allows precipitation to drain through the pavement into a layer of coarse aggregate and then a layer of geotextile material.  The rain gardens will collect water from the tennis courts and a parking lot.  Projects will be installed in Fall 2009 for project completion by June, 2010.   

Juniata River “State of the Watershed”
The Juniata Clean Water Partnership was awarded a grant for $11,800 from the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds in December 2009 to evaluate the successes and shortcomings in the implementation of the Juniata Watershed Management Plan. The evaluation will look at the key resources identified in the plan.  These include: Land, Water, Biological, Recreational, Cultural/Historical, Educational, and Political/Economical. The project will also include organizational structure and strategic planning sessions with the Bayer Center for Non-profit Management.  

Coldwater Heritage Partnership:  Willow Run Conservation Plan
The Coldwater Heritage Partnership recently announced that over $42,000 in grants have been awarded to local organizations to protect and conserve Pennsylvania's coldwater stream habitats.  The Coldwater Heritage Partnership is a cooperative initiative amongst Pennsylvania Trout Unlimited, DCNR, PFBC and the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds.  Juniata Clean Water Partnership was awarded $6,400 to conduct a stream assessment and prepare a conservation plan for Willow Run and Dougherty Run in Juniata County.  The work for this grant will be does in cooperation with the Juniata County Conservation District.   

page last updated 8/10/2010