New grants for the care of Indiana’s water bodies totaling $1.192 million have been awarded through the DNR Division of Fish & Wildlife’s Lake and River Enhancement (LARE) program.
The grants were awarded by DNR director Cameron Clark and fund projects in 20 counties and affect 26 different lakes, rivers and streams. They include grants benefitting projects ranging from Posey County on the Ohio River to the City of Elkhart, near the border with Michigan.
Locally, the Duck Creek Streambank Stabilization Project will receive $50,000.
Local sponsors submit applications for LARE assistance and commit to sharing a portion of the total cost. DNR’s share comes from a fee paid annually by boat owners when registering their boats with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles.
Several projects address bank erosion and lakes or streams, and many of these also have an aquatic-habitat enhancement component. Seven watershed land treatment grants go to county soil and water conservation districts to help landowners reduce runoff of sediment and nutrients. Prevention of non-point source pollution in the form of sediment or nutrients is more economical than trying to remove it from lakes and streams in the future.
“The LARE program is over 30 years old now and these new grants continue the use of funds from boat owners to support conservation efforts to protect and enhance our lakes and rivers,” said Mark Reiter, director of DNR Fish & Wildlife. “With funding from LARE, local partners are making our waterways safer, enhancing habitat, reducing erosion and improving opportunities for boating and fishing throughout our great Hoosier state.”