Friday, July 31st, 2015
Artists sought to raise water quality awareness
By Nancy Allen
The Grand Lake/Wabash Watershed Alliance hopes to enlist local artists to raise awareness about keeping storm drains free of debris and pollutants.
Watershed coordinator Abbey Tobe Thursday told the alliance's joint board of supervisors she is working with the city of Celina and the Lake Area Arts Group on the endeavor.
Tobe said the LAAG will solicit artists participating in the Oct. 10 Affair of the Art Apples and Ale event to create chalk drawings around Main Street storm drains that flow to the lake. The wine and beer tasting event will be held noon-6 p.m. in downtown Celina.
With the help of street department officials, Tobe created a map showing the location of 20 storm drains on Main Street from the post office south to the NAPA Auto Parts store. The day of the event, the map will be given to artists who will choose drains to decorate with their chalk drawings.
"I want area artists to do it to bring attention to the arts group and a cause - being aware of storm drains that flow to the lake," Tobe said. "I chose chalk because it won't harm anything."
Tobe said other groups concerned with water quality awareness have staged similar projects.
Tobe said tree limbs, leaves, grass clippings and trash can build a web over storm drains.
"We have been wanting to do something about storm drains because they can get blocked and streets flood because the water can't get away," she said.
Tobe said she did not know how many storm drains lead to the lake, adding her project will focus only on the ones on Main Street inside the venue area.
Board members also learned that Tobe intends to apply for a $293,000 Ohio EPA 319 grant to restore the east branch of Beaver Creek that flows near the Mercer County Elks golf course on U.S. 127 south of Celina. About $200,000 in in-kind matching funds in the form of donated labor also would fund the roughly $493,000 project, she said.
The application deadline for the highly competitive grant funds is Aug. 14. Tobe said grant winners would be announced in early July 2016.
Many county creeks and streams have been straightened and deepened to increase flow. The project is meant to restore the creek to a natural state that mimics how nature would form a stream.
The next watershed joint board meeting will be held in late October or early November, depending on harvest, Tobe said.
