MakingWaves - News from the Division of Water

This Week's Updates:

• Division of Water Staff Receive Achievement Awards
• WaterSense Partner Five-Year Anniversary
• State Revolving Fund Final 2020 Intended Use Plans
• Lake Ontario Business Resiliency Program Now Accepting Applications
• DEC Encourages New Yorkers to Complete Survey on St. Lawrence River Watershed to Help Guide Revitalization Plan for Region

Division of Water Staff Receive

Achievement Awards

Congratulations to DEC's Division of Water staff who were recognized on December 4 at DEC's annual Trad-Berle-Murphy Awards ceremony for their leadership, teamwork, public service and mentoring.

Kelli Higgins-Roche, an assistant engineer in the Division of Water's Bureau of Flood Protection and Dam Safety was selected as the 30th recipient of the Ernest F. Trad Award, DEC's highest honor awarded to an individual employee.

The Division of Water's Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) Team was one of two teams to receive the Peter Berle Memorial Award for their crucial work to combat HABs in New York State. The team members include: Rebecca Gorney, Stephanie June, Alene Onion, Aimee Clinkhammer, Anthony Prestigiacomo, Lewis McCaffrey, Keleigh Reynolds, Scott Kishbaugh, A.J. Smith, Eric Wiegert, Scott Cook, and Ricky Ng (Office of General Counsel).

WaterSense Partner Five-Year Anniversary

DEC is celebrating five years as a USEPA WaterSense partner. By helping consumers use less water without sacrificing quality, WaterSense has helped save a cumulative 3.4 trillion gallons of water and more than $84.2 billion in water and energy bills.

You may recognize WaterSense from labels on water efficient products like shower heads. DEC's partnership with WaterSense includes promoting campaigns like Fix a Leak Week and sharing their water saving tips.

State Revolving Fund Final 2020 Intended Use Plans

The New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC), DEC, and the Department of Health have prepared the Final Federal Fiscal Year 2020 Intended Use Plan (IUP) for the Clean Water State Revolving Fund and the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund. The IUPs include lists of projects that may receive financial assistance between October 1, 2019 and September 30, 2020.

EFC is seeking comments from the public by December 13, 2019 regarding projects that were added to the Annual Project Priority List after publication of the Draft 2020 IUPs. For more information, including how to comment, view the November 27 Environmental Notice Bulletin.

Lake Ontario Business Resiliency Program Now Accepting Applications

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo has announced the application period for the Lake Ontario Business Resiliency Program is now open to businesses and other organizations directly impacted by the historic flooding of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River earlier this year. The Resiliency and Economic Development Initiative Commission has made available up to $30 million to support resiliency-related capital improvement projects at affected businesses and other eligible organizations, which may qualify for reimbursement of up to 50 percent of project costs, with a maximum award of $200,000.

Applications must be postmarked by January 31, 2020. Applications and program guidelines, including the full list of project criteria, are available on the Empire State Development website.

DEC Encourages New Yorkers to Complete Survey on St. Lawrence River Watershed to Help Guide Revitalization Plan for Region

St. Lawrence River Watershed Project partners, including DEC, have released a survey seeking input from New Yorkers with knowledge of the watershed. The short online survey seeks information from the public about interactions with these land and water resources, and how a revitalization plan can address regional concerns. The survey will be open until January 15, 2020.

Survey results will help guide St. Lawrence River Watershed Project partners in developing a revitalization plan. The watershed planning process gives communities in the area a chance to consider projects that could spark natural resource protection, economic investment, regional sustainability, and community revitalization.