For Immediate Release
Contact: Conservation Resource Alliance, (231) 946-6817
TRAVERSE CITY, MICHIGAN – The Charlevoix County Community Foundation has awarded the Conservation Resource Alliance (CRA) an $8,000 grant to incorporate all of the road/stream crossing inventory data for the Lake Charlevoix watershed into the existing web-based “River Restoration in Northwest Michigan” site (http://www.liaa.info/crabmp/default.asp). This GIS database, designed by CRA and Land Information Access Association (LIAA), includes the framework for an interactive and updateable tool for tracking sediment input at sites throughout 15 counties in northwest Michigan. The database is web hosted in an existing interactive water quality database for maximum accessibility and now serves as a template for groups throughout the Great Lakes basin. The number of watersheds incorporated continues to grow with the addition of the Lake Charlevoix watershed road/stream crossings and this information is available to anyone with internet access.
The Charlevoix County Community Foundation also supported CRA’s first ever infrastructure project completed on Beaver Island with a $2,300 grant, which assisted in removing a problem road/stream crossing and improve passage for fish traveling between Lake Michigan and Iron Ore creek. For years, the jasper-tinted creek emptied into Iron Ore Bay by a combination of four inappropriately sized culverts failing in structural integrity and poor placement. With the potential for “coaster” brook trout recruitment from upstream stretches of Iron Ore Creek to the big lake, the replacement of the only road crossing on the creek became a priority given that it crosses immediately adjacent to the mouth. A partnership between several diverse groups resulted in the $34,350 replacement of the existing structure with one more conducive to fish passage. In addition, the new structure complements the dramatic beauty of the location. The partnering groups included the Conservation Resource Alliance, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, Charlevoix County Road Commission, Kalamazoo Valley Chapter of Trout Unlimited, Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, and the Charlevoix County Community Foundation.
Established in 1968, the Conservation Resource Alliance is a private, non-profit organization that coordinates sensible stewardship of the land throughout northwest Michigan. CRA has facilitated natural resource conservation projects for over 42 years, tackling high-priority problems that threaten to degrade Michigan’s world-class waterways, landscapes, and rich wildlife diversity. For more information about these projects, CRA’s programs, or how to get involved, contact the Conservation Resource Alliance at (231) 946-6817, via e-mail at info@rivercare.org, or visit CRA’s web site at www.rivercare.org.
Photos of the Iron Ore project are available by contacting Jill Rowley at jill@rivercare.org.
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