Photo courtesy of Asheville GreenWorks.
The Pigeon River Fund awarded six grants totaling $143,125 to environmental groups working to improve surface water quality, enhance fish and wildlife habitats, expand public use and access to waterways and increase water quality awareness in Buncombe, Haywood and Madison counties. Since 1996, the Pigeon River Fund has distributed more than $7.7 million in grants.
The most recent Pigeon River Fund grant recipients are:
American Rivers - $26,000 to undertake the post-construction permit requirements of the Beaverdam Creek dam removal project in the Pigeon River confluence.
Asheville GreenWorks - $20,000 to expand the use of its Trash Trout and Trash Trout Junior litter capturing devices on waterways in Buncombe, Madison and Haywood counties and build a sustainable business model for its French Broad River Pollution Prevention Program.
Maggie Valley Sanitary District - $30,000 to support the acquisition and permanent protection of the 74-acre Farmer property in Haywood County.
MountainTrue - $28,600 to continue E. coli monitoring and pollution tracking work, as well as enhance bacteria monitoring by incorporating new technologies.
Mountain Valleys Resource Conservation & Development Council - $4,400 for conceptual design plans and detailed cost estimates regarding bank stabilization and land loss reduction on Blannahassett Island in downtown Marshall.
Mountain Valleys Resource Conservation & Development Council - $34,125 for stormwater improvements at Brush Creek Elementary and Madison Middle Schools.
The next application deadline for qualifying nonprofits in Buncombe, Haywood and Madison counties is September 15, 2020. Applications and instructions are available at www.cfwnc.org.
The Pigeon River Fund was established through an agreement between Carolina Power & Light (now Duke Energy) and the State of North Carolina. The grant program is administered by The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina. For information about the Pigeon River Fund, contact Senior Program Officer Tara Scholtz at 828-367-9913.