Conservationists celebrate more than 200 federally funded projects to restore waterways in Delaware watershed

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Removing dams to restore fish passage, creating rain gardens to reduce flooding and stormwater runoff and building trails to improve access to the outdoors — these are just some of the projects funded by the Delaware Watershed Conservation Fund each year.

On Monday, environmental agencies celebrated seven years of conservation work funded by the federal grants.

The program funds habitat restoration and conservation initiatives throughout the Delaware River watershed. This year, 45 projects received over $17 million in funding — the largest amount spent in the fund’s history.

“The health of the environment is so intricately tied to the health of people and our mental health, our physical health, the economy, and just the opportunity to get out in nature and the awe of nature and the beauty of nature,” said Wendi Weber, regional director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “It’s so critically important that we continue the work out on the ground, and preserve and conserve these special places, not only for us, but the future generations.”

The program, launched in 2018 by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, was made possible by the 2016 passage of the congressional Delaware River Basin Conservation Act.

Since 2018, the fund has awarded more than $72 million to more than 200 projects that aim to restore habitat and wetlands, and improve water quality.

Monday’s event took place at Alexis I. du Pont High School in Wilmington, where students have built pollinator gardens to attract insects such as bees and butterflies, and improve water and air quality.

Last year, the Red Clay Consolidated School District was awarded a $253,000 grant to restore the watershed and habitat at eight of the district’s schools.

“These projects will and have allowed our students opportunities to engage in outdoor learning spaces, helping them to understand the positive environmental impact each and every one of us can make when we convert mowed turf to a garden, a meadow, or a tree,” said Tawanda Bond, senior director of teaching and learning for the Red Clay Consolidated School District.

Students from across the district showcased their work to help improve the environment. Cab Calloway School of the Arts is planting an on-site meadow to soak up pollutants such as nitrogen, and improve water quality in the nearby Red Clay Creek.

“It’s very rewarding work. It helps to bring awareness to the problem of water quality in the state of Delaware,” said Rucha Purandare, a senior at Cab Calloway. “This meadow lab can be a community building exercise, where students and faculty can help to maintain these plots of land … and it can also serve as a mental health retreat to get away from the stresses of school for students and staff alike.”