DEP Regional Director Jim Miller and staff joined community leaders Tuesday to celebrate a new project to reduce pollution from stormwater runoff into Edinboro Lake in Edinboro, Erie County.

The project was made possible through a Growing Greener Grant to the Edinboro Lake Watershed Association.

The project includes Best Management Practices (BMP) like a rain garden, a vegetated swale, and an infiltration trench. This project will capture and treat runoff from about 38 acres, helping to improve the water quality to Edinboro Lake Watershed.

By installing these BMP’s, they will help to reduce an estimated 24 pounds per year of phosphorus, which represents a 1 percent improvement decrease in the budget of phosphorus for Edinboro Lake and 10,000 pounds per year of reduction of total suspended solids.

Edinboro Lake Watershed Association chose General McLane School District due to its ideal site for educating both students and the public and its proximity within the Edinboro Lake Watershed.

The Growing Greener Grant was awarded to the Edinboro Lake Watershed Association, which worked with partner organizations to put the project on the ground.  Dr. Brian Zimmerman serves as the President of the Edinboro Lake Watershed Association, which is the grant recipient.

Steve Halmi, Deiss & Halmi Engineering, is also on the Edinboro Lake Watershed Association Board and served as the project engineer.

General McLane alumnus and landscape architect for Pennsylvania State University, Thomas Flynn served as the landscape architect. All have donated their time and services to the project.  J. J. Wurst Landscape Contractor, Inc. was the contractor for the project.

Click Here to watch a video about the project.

(Photo: Rain garden at Teresa E. Walters Education Center, General McLane School District.)

[Posted: Jan. 23, 2018]

1/29/2018