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Clean Water Fund Grant Awarded to West Otter Tail SWCD for Otter Tail County Buffer Initiative

July 20, 2014 by

West Otter Tail Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) is honored to announce that the Otter Tail County Buffer Initiative has been awarded over $290,000 in funding from the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources (BWSR) through the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment.

In March 2014, the West Otter Tail SWCD, East Otter Tail SWCD, and Otter Tail County developed and adopted the Otter Tail County Buffer Initiative. Otter Tail County is unique in that there are 1,049 lakes, more than any other county in the United States, and 1,174 miles of rivers, streams, and ditches which totals 4,618 miles of shoreline. Because of this unique resource West Otter Tail SWCD, East Otter Tail SWCD and Otter Tail County are working in cooperation to protect the water resources within Otter Tail County.

 Through the awarded Clean Water Fund grant, this initiative will accelerate the inventory of public waters and identify compliance with Shoreland Management Ordinance. This initiative aims to educate landowners and provide conservation programs to move in the direction of 100% compliance.

“Otter Tail County’s abundance of lakes, river, and streams are an important natural resource in our community,” Brad Mergens, District Manager said.  “This grant funds will allow us to accelerate our work to protect and restore water quality.  We’re grateful for support from all our partners and the commitment of our community to move this project forward.” Click here to read more

For more information please contact the West Otter Tail SWCD at 218-739-4694 ext. 4.

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