Superior Watershed Partnership funded for shoreline restoration

Courtesy: Superior Watershed Partnership

The Superior Watershed Partnership has new funding to clean up hundreds of miles of shoreline.

The organization was awarded a $122,000 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for the cleanup of 600 miles of U.P. shoreline.

The Great Lakes Climate Corps plans to host cleanup events in several shoreline communities. Event planning will begin in the next few months. Projects are expected to take place in the summer.

“We’re going to be targeting some of the larger debris that’s maybe been there for a decade or two,” said Great Lake Climate Corps Program Manager Tyler Penrod. “We’ve seen from local scuba divers refrigerators, car pieces, different appliances, etc.”

Penrod says the key to using the funding is the participation of communities.

“To utilize this funding, we’re looking for local units of government, could be cities, counties, tribes, state agencies, whoever is a stakeholder along the coast of Lake Superior. We’relooking for leads on marine debris.”

Once the events are up and running, Penrod says the partnership will need help, not only with collecting smaller trash and debris, but with carrying larger items out. That’s where the community comes in.

To get involved, visit Superior Watershed Partnership & Land Conservancy – Dedicated to the protection of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (superiorwatersheds.org)