A multi-million dollar, multi-state initiative promises to protect drinking water for 15 million people.
The William Penn Foundation is funding $35 million of multi-year grants to protect and restore portions of the Delaware River watershed in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, and Delaware.
The grants will fund more than 40 restoration projects, develop long-term water quality data, and protect more than 30,000 acres.
The foundation, which is based in Philadelphia, will fund projects by the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Open Space Institute and more than 40 additional national and regional partners.
The foundation says that deforestation from commercial, residential, and energy development, chemical runoff from farms, and storm water runoff in cities severely threaten the health of the watershed, which is a source of drinking water for millions of people.
The project is being hailed for its partnership.
“This is an extraordinary opportunity for our nationally renowned water quality scientists to work hand‐in‐hand with leading conservationists who know these geographies inside and out,” said Academy of Natural Science President and CEO George Gephart, Jr.
