The Restoration Fund

The Schuylkill River Restoration Fund

The Grant Portal will be open in January

RESTORATION GRANT STATISTICS

• Over $5,000,000 in project funding since its inception in 2006

• 136 projects funded; 121 completed to date

• 11 abandoned mine drainage projects completed

• Agricultural improvements completed on over 40 Farms in Berks, Montgomery, and Lehigh Counties

Over 2,000 acres of high priority lands permanently preserved within the Schuylkill River Watershed

The Schuylkill River Restoration Fund provides grants to government agencies and non-profit organizations for projects that improve the quality of water in the watershed. The grants focus on three major sources of pollution: stormwater run-off, agricultural pollution and abandoned mine drainage.

The annual grant program begins each year in January with funding typically being awarded in May or June.  The goal of the Restoration Fund is to support projects in the Schuylkill River watershed that are consistent with restoration and water management goals for the entire basin. Any questions about the Schuylkill River Restoration Fund or the grant submission process should be directed to Tim Fenchel at tfenchel@schuylkillriver.org.

The fund was created in 2006 through a unique public/private partnership between Exelon Nuclear, the Delaware River Basin Commission and the Schuylkill River Greenways National Heritage Area. Since being established in 2006, the fund has distributed more than $4.6 million–and leveraged another $5 million–for 121 projects that protect and restore the Schuylkill River.

The Schuylkill River Restoration Fund is the result of a unique public/private partnership. Funders include Constellation’s Limerick Generating Station, the Philadelphia Water Department, Partnership for the Delaware Estuary, and Aqua PA. A number of partners oversee the fund and its projects. The grants are administered by the Schuylkill River Greenways National Heritage Area, which is managed by the non-profit Schuylkill River Greenway Association. All grant recipients are carefully selected by an advisory committee consisting of:

• Constellation
• Delaware River Basin Commission
• Philadelphia Water Department
• Environmental Protection Agency
• Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
• Partnership for the Delaware Estuary
• Schuylkill River Greenways National Heritage Area
• PA American Water
• Aqua PA
• Schuylkill Action Network

The Schuylkill Action Network, in collaboration with Schuylkill River Greenways, hosted the 2024 Schuylkill River Restoration Fund Bus Tour on September 5th.  Attendees were introduced to two very different Philadelphia projects on this year’s tour.

The East Falls River Landing is a much-welcomed and long-awaited landing along the Schuylkill River Heritage Water Trail, providing a terrific spot for paddlers to stop and enjoy the neighborhood’s riverfront business district.  Thanks to a Restoration Grant from the Schuylkill River Greenways with generous support from the Philadelphia Water Department and the PowerCorpsPHL workforce development program, in the fall of 2022 EFDC conducted a large-scale planting to restore the native riparian corridor on the banks of the Landing by installing native floodplain species to improve water quality, habitat and stormwater management.

Located in East Fairmount Park at 4530 Kelly Drive adjacent to the public parking lot just upstream from the East Falls Bridge, and along the Schuylkill River Trail, this site has a long history of river access: dating as far back as when the Lenape people established a fishing and hunting village along the banks of the river near the original rocky falls, to the late 1800’s when East Falls was a riverfront resort destination with inns and restaurants serving up famous Catfish and Waffle dinners with locally brewed German beers to visitors from Center City who were transported by ferry to a landing. Today, paddlers and anglers access the river along the East Falls banks from the popular Schuylkill River Trail – and now the East Falls River Landing.

Brewerytown Garden was originally established in 2011 as Marathon Farm, a farm-to-table restaurant enterprise with a small designated space for community members to grow their own produce. By 2014, the restaurant’s interest in this project had waned, and neighbors swiftly took steps to ensure that the garden would remain part of the neighborhood, working in tandem with community leaders and local government officials to re-establish it in 2015 as Brewerytown Garden, an entirely community-run, nonprofit organization. Later that same year, Philadelphia Parks and Recreation selected Brewerytown Garden as its first preservation garden in its recently-founded FarmPhilly program. Through that alliance, Brewerytown Garden was able to secure half its land through the city of Philadelphia.

Sitting on just over a half acre of land, Brewerytown Garden is presently equipped with running water, electricity, greenhouse, tool shed, composting bins, picnic and event area, community board, beehives, and over 80 individual garden plots for growing organic produce. It provides a place where members of the community can meet and learn from one another, grow organic produce, practice sustainable living, and share food, knowledge, and friendship with all of our neighbors. We are a multicultural, diverse, and all-inclusive group of households from Brewerytown, Strawberry Mansion, and North Fairmount passionate about providing ever-increasing access to healthy food and a vibrant, serene community gathering space in our neighborhood.

The Schuylkill River Restoration Fund is funded through public/private partnerships and relies on donations from numerous organizations and individuals. Click here to donate to the fund.