Chesapeake Bay Trust
FishAmerica, in partnership with the Chesapeake
Bay Trust, provides funding to restore fish habitat, improve water
quality, and enhance fish stocks in the Chesapeake Bay and its Maryland
tributaries.
Grants awarded through this partnership fund hands-on, grassroots
projects involving community groups, students, or other volunteers.
Project types include riparian restoration; streambank stabilization;
instream habitat restoration; artificial and oyster reef restoration;
wetland creation and enhancement; and, submerged aquatic vegetation
(SAV) plantings.
Available funding is announced through a Request for Proposals
(RFP). Please contact FishAmerica,
703.519.9691 for more information.
2009 FAF/CBT Funded Projects
The Beaver Creek Watershed Association of Funkstown, Maryland was
awarded $35,000 to restore fish habitat and improve water quality
in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. They will restore the stream’s
natural channel and stabilize 1,000 feet of streambank to improve
instream habitat and reduce erosion along Beaver Creek in Hagerstown,
Maryland.
The Bittersweet Community Association of Annapolis, Maryland was
awarded $35,000 to restore fisheries habitat and improve water
quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. They will stabilize 340
linear feet of shoreline and restore riparian along the Aberdeen
Cove, a tributary to the South River in Annapolis, Maryland.
The National Aquarium of Baltimore was awarded $21,585 to restore
fisheries habitat in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. They restored
one acre of wetland habitat at Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge
in Kent County, Maryland.
2008 FAF/CBT Funded Projects
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources was awarded $30,500
to restore fish passage and improve fisheries habitat and water
quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The state opened up
more than 46 square miles of stream for fish passage and will
stabilize the streambank along Gunpowder Falls.
The Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (Commission)
of Montgomery County, Maryland was awarded $35,000 to improve fish
passage and restore fisheries habitat in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
They opened up more than one mile of high quality Eastern brook
trout habitat along Cash Valley Run.
The Patuxent Riverkeeper of Upper Marlboro, Maryland was awarded
$35,000 to restore fish passage and improve water quality in the
Chesapeake Bay watershed. The Riverkeeper opened nearly two miles
of stream for fish passage and restore streambanks along the Green
Branch of the Patuxent River.
The Oyster Recovery Partnership of Annapolis, Maryland requests
$10,000 to create educational oyster displays and create live oyster
exhibits to improve water quality and fisheries habitat as well
as improve community awareness and involvement in the restoration
of the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
2006 FAF/CBT Funded Projects
The Mason Springs Conservancy received $3,500 to restore and conserve
riparian habitat in Mason Springs in the Potomac River watershed.
The Conservancy restored three acres of valuable shoreline buffer
habitat along upper Mattawoman Creek. The Mattawoman Creek is
a 35 mile long tributary that flows west through swampland to
form part of the border between Charles and Prince Georges counties
in Maryland. Mason Springs is a historical angling site for river
herring and yellow perch, with generations of anglers still visiting
the area.
The Chesapeake Wildlife Heritage received $27,159 to restore fisheries
habitat in the Upper Potomac River watershed. They restored nearly
32 acres of buffer and wetland habitat along the St. James Run.
St. James Run is in the Antietam Creek watershed of the Upper Potomac
River Basin and is home to recreational sportfishing as well as
canoeing and kayaking. Volunteers restored more than 20 acres of
forested buffer along the stream; create five acres of warm season
grasslands; and a restore a five-acre wetland. Students from St.
James School and the local Boy Scout troop recruited to assist
in tree planting activities. Volunteers will monitor and maintain
the site to ensure it remains free of invasive species.
2005 FAF/CBT Funded Projects
The Allegany Soil and Water Conservation District received $17,455
to restore fisheries habitat and water quality along Town Creek
in the upper Potomac River watershed in Allegany County. They
installed exclusionary fencing and restored riparian areas at
three separate project sites. Town Creek has a delayed harvest
section to promote catch and release fly fishing for trout, while
the North Branch of the Potomac River is an exceptional smallmouth
bass fishery.
The George’s Creek Watershed Association was awarded a $25,000
grant to restore fisheries habitat in the George’s Creek
watershed in Allegany County by stabilizing the streambank and
replanting the riparian area. The state stocks George’s Creek
and manages it as a Put & Take fishery.
The City of Annapolis received $14,861 to restore fisheries habitat
along Back Creek in Annapolis. They removed invasive vegetation
and plant underwater grasses at the Osprey Nature Center in the
Back Creek Nature Park.
2003 FAF/CBT Funded Projects
The Anacostia Watershed Society received $13,720 to enhance fisheries
habitat in the Chesapeake Bay watershed in Bladensburg, Maryland.
They restored wetlands at four sites along the Anacostia River,
a small tributary of the Potomac River in the Washington D.C.
metro area. The urban stream system is located in one of the
most densely populated areas in the United States.
The Chesapeake Bay Environmental Center received $25,000 to create
fisheries habitat in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The applicant
installed 120 Reef Balls® in the Cabin Creek area of the Chesapeake
Bay. The Reef Balls® will serve as hard substrate for oyster
spat to settle and colonize. Volunteers and staff from CBEC also
developed a local reef awareness program to include fishing workshops,
in-class lectures, and on-site field trips to the reef site for
monitoring.
The Maryland Environmental Service received $25,000 to create
fisheries habitat in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The applicant
installed 225 Reef Balls® in the Taylors Island/James Island
area, as well as the Tilghman Island and Little Cove Point. The
Reef Balls® will provide fisheries habitat and serve as hard
substrate for oyster spat to settle and colonize.
The Magothy River Association received $10,775 to restore and
enhance fisheries habitat in the Chesapeake Bay. They installed
Reef Balls® at five sites in the Magothy River. The Reef Balls® will
provide fisheries habitat and serve as hard substrate for oyster
spat to settle and colonize.
The Potomac Conservancy received $16,422 to restore fisheries
habitat and water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Volunteers
restored the riparian areas of the Carroll Creek. Carroll Creek
is a tributary of the Monocacy River in the Potomac River and Chesapeake
Bay watershed. Carroll Creek is home to rainbow trout and brown
trout. They stabilized 3,000 feet of streambanks, planted a minimum
of 1,600 trees along three acres to establish a 50-foot riparian
buffer. The project improved water quality, enhanced instream fish
habitat, and restored riparian areas.
