OHIO LAKE ERIE COMMISSION ANNOUNCES MORE THAN $400,000 IN GRANTS TO NINE ORGANIZATIONS: OH

CLEVELAND, OH -- The Ohio Lake Erie Commission (OLEC) has awarded
more than $375,000 to six organizations to conduct long-term research
projects on the lake. Nearly $30,000 more went to three other organizations
for short-term research projects.
The grants were approved on September 4 at the commission's meeting
in Cleveland. Larger projects that received funding were: a nature-based
field guide and survey of the Lake Erie Islands; efforts to inspect 4,000
home sewage systems in Cuyahoga County; a Clean Boater Program for the Lake
Erie region; water quality monitoring on Maumee Bay; an pilot beach advisory
system for Huntington Beach and an initiative to reduce soil erosion among
Lake Erie watershed farmers.
Smaller grants were awarded to study yellow perch reproduction in
the lake and PCBs in the Ashtabula River. Another project will look at ways
of reducing sediment loading in the lake through improved drainage ditch
regulations.
During the last 10 years, the commission has awarded more than $7.5
million in grants from its Lake Erie Protection Fund to local and state
organizations for a variety of lake-based research projects. Money for the
fund comes from the sale of Lake Erie license plates, which feature an image
of the historic Marblehead Lighthouse.
The Ohio Lake Erie Commission is comprised of the directors of the
Ohio departments of environmental protection, transportation, development,
health, natural resources and agriculture.
The commission was established to preserve Lake Erie's natural
resources, water quality and ecosystem by furthering the goals laid out in
the Lake Erie Protection & Restoration Plan. It also promotes economic
development in the region.

Source: ODNR