Deadline Next Week For Community Grant Applications

A program that's designed to protect Alameda County's creeks, wetlands and the Bay is accepting grant applications for small community projects. The deadline to apply is next week, April 14.

The Clean Water Program's 2016 Community Stewardship Grant (CSG) program will award a total of $25,000. Each grant will be between $1,000 and $5,000.

According to program administrators, "Eligible applicants include teacher and student groups, youth organizations, homeowners associations, community groups, environmental groups and other non-profit organizations. Activities range from creek restoration, wildlife habitat improvement and rainwater harvesting to public education. Projects focused on outreach typically promote stormwater pollution prevention practices such as litter and toxics reduction and proper automotive care. Outreach methods include art projects, events, trainings, videos and printed materials, among others."

Previous grants have included:

• Earth Team worked with students at San Lorenzo High School to plan and conduct two campus beautification events, including a trash assessment, litter cleanup and tree planting.
• Old Oakland Neighbors transformed unattractive and under-used public trashcans into mosaic pieces of art, featuring local birds and plants, to discourage litter and spruce up the neighborhood.
• The Alameda Creek Alliance led 460 volunteers in eleven restoration work days at Stonybrook Creek and Alameda Creek at Niles Staging Area in Fremont, and created a brochure to reach out to the larger community at events.

“Pollutants like litter and chemicals are posing a serious threat to the health of our local waterways. With the help of our annual Community Stewardship Grant program, we can tap into the expertise and creativity of groups right here in Alameda County to help us protect our local creeks, wetlands and the Bay,” explained Clean Water Program Manager Jim Scanlin.

--Image via Clean Water Program