BOSTON, Mass. — The state awarded the Housatonic Valley Association $33,500 to benefit the Berkshire Clean, Cold, Connected Restoration Partnership.

 

The Healey-Driscoll Administration announced the award of $982,360 in grants to ecological restoration projects throughout Massachusetts by the Department of Fish and Game's (DFG) Division of Ecological Restoration (DER). These projects, supported through three DER programs, will strengthen community resilience to climate change, improve climate-ready infrastructure and public safety, and restore crucial habitat and water quality, among other benefits.

 

"Ecological restoration offers transformational benefits for both climate resilience and biodiversity. These priority actions will reduce flooding, improve water quality, and reconnect and restore critical habitats for fish and wildlife," said DFG Commissioner Tom O'Shea. "As climate change brings increasing challenges, these projects and partnerships will support Massachusetts' ResilientMass planning efforts to ensure the Commonwealth is prepared to withstand, adapt to, and rapidly recover from extreme weather events." 

 

DER awarded $327,361 in funds through its Culvert Replacement Municipal Assistance (CRMA) Grant Program to eight municipalities, $555,000 in grant funds to five Priority Restoration Projects, and $100,000 to support three Restoration Partnerships through DER's Regional Restoration Partnerships Program. These projects and partnerships will help Massachusetts prepare for the impacts of climate change, address public safety concerns, improve habitat and water quality, and restore important ecosystems throughout the state.

 

In Berkshire County, this award will continue to build local and regional capacity through training opportunities, restoration collaboration, and planning while advancing locally driven, high-priority restoration projects such as culvert replacements and dam removals. This work will restore degraded aquatic ecosystems and increase climate resilience throughout the Hoosic, Housatonic, and Farmington River watersheds. 

 

DER's Regional Restoration Partnerships Program aims to increase the pace and scale of ecological restoration in Massachusetts by building the capacity of local and regional organizations that work collaboratively to advance restoration work. Partnerships through this program lead projects and activities to restore rivers and wetlands and help people and nature adapt to climate change.