The city of Auburn will apply for four separate grants to fund water infrastructure and environmental conservation projects.
Thursday, the Auburn City Council authorized city staff to apply for grants from the state Department of Environmental Conservation to complete the following projects: acquisition of land at the Owasco Flats, engineering services for the separation of the city’s sanitary and stormwater collection system and to take inventory of existing city trees and plant new ones.
The city will apply for the Water Quality Improvement Project grant to aid in the purchase about 100 acres of land at the Owasco Flats in Moravia to continue to protect the source of the city’s drinking water.
In June, city council members said they would like staff to pursue acquiring the land, which is contiguous to land the city already owns at the flats, from the estate of Shirley Jones for $69,500. The land is located at 2680 Rockefeller Road.
According to the council resolution, “This part of the watershed has been identified as critical to aiding with the filtering and capture of phosphorus from the inlet waters. The potential to expand the Owasco Flats for water quality purposes is an important step towards reducing (harmful algal blooms) in Owasco Lake.”
The Citizen:
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