Maine DEP awards stream crossing grants

AUGUSTA — Maine voters approved a bond package in November 2017 that included $5 million dollars for vital improvement projects including stream crossing and culvert upgrades. More than two dozen grants have been awarded by the Maine DEP for projects across the state, including $95,000 for the Mountain Road in Blanchard and another $95,000 for Crooked Brook in Charleston.

These monies fund competitive grants that match local funding for the upgrade of municipal culverts at stream crossings and must be located on a municipal road. The projects awarded will: benefit public infrastructure by replacing several culverts that are currently failing and at risk of complete washouts, open or improve fish spawning habitat, eliminate undersized and other impassable culverts and reduce some of the worst ongoing erosion impacts to streams, brooks, and lakes.

The Maine DEP received 49 applications to review which totaled over $4.2 million in fund requests, the department has issued $2.5 million dollars in grant money for this round of applications.

Four previous rounds of culvert grants have resulted in a total of 101 culvert upgrade projects in Maine communities statewide and have expended $7.9 million in bond funds earmarked for these infrastructure improvements. For more information including examples of successful applications and the master score sheet for this round please visit maine.gov/dep/land/grants/stream-crossing-upgrade.html.