DEC Region 5 Announces More Than $26 Million in Grants Awarded to Northern New York Water Quality Protection Projects

Local Grant Awards Part of $249 Million in Grants Awarded to 181 Water Quality Protection Projects Across New York State

Town of Elizabethtown Also Received Over $14 Million of Enhanced Water Infrastructure Improvement (WIIA) Grant from New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) for New Municipal Sewer and Treatment Plant

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Region 5 celebrated the recent awarding of over $26 million in State grants to support 14 projects in local Northern New York communities through DEC’s successful Water Quality Improvement Project (WQIP) program. WQIP grants fund projects that directly improve water quality or habitat, promote flood risk reduction, restoration, and enhanced flood and climate resiliency, or protect a drinking water source.  

DEC Region 5 Director Joseph Zalewski said, “Funding from the Water Quality Improvement Project program will directly help local communities upgrade essential infrastructure and improve resiliency to protect residents, families, and businesses. DEC is proud to provide these critical grants to local governments and non-profit organizations doing important work across the region as part of Governor Kathy Hochul's record commitment to improving water quality across the state.

Grantees include: 

Clinton County, $677,120 – Clinton County will replace an undersized and deteriorated culvert in the Town of Saranac. They will install a new hydraulically-sized culvert and re-grade streambanks to restore stream alignment. This project will reduce nutrient loading and improve water quality in the Lake Champlain watershed. 

Town of Crown Point (Essex County), $312,000 – The Town of Crown Point will construct a salt storage structure to cover a currently exposed salt pile. The facility will protect the salt from precipitation and reduce salt-laden runoff from entering waterways. This project will protect water quality in groundwater and the Lake Champlain watershed. 

Town of Elizabethtown (Essex County), $10,000,000 – The Town of Elizabethtown will construct a new sequencing batch reactor wastewater treatment plant, which is Phase I of its first municipal wastewater treatment system. The system will replace aging and failing onsite septic systems, improving the water quality of the Boquet River and Lake Champlain watershed.  

Town of Moriah (Essex County), $1,000,000 – The Town of Moriah will construct 600 feet of engineered shoreline stabilization with native vegetation enhancements. The nature-based and structural improvements will address shoreline erosion caused by wave action and fluctuating lake levels. This project will reduce sediment and nutrient loading to Lake Champlain. 

Franklin County, $600,000 – Franklin County will construct a fully enclosed sand and salt storage building to cover exposed salt and sand piles. This project will reduce salt runoff and improve water quality in the Lower Salmon River and Lower Trout River watersheds.

Franklin County Soil and Water Conservation District (Franklin County), $131,720 – The Franklin County Soil and Water Conservation District will implement roadside erosion control practices on previously identified high and moderate priority locations. Practices will include hydroseeding, planting of woody vegetation, and installing check dams and rolled erosion control. The program will reduce sediment and nutrient loading into nearby waterbodies throughout the county.  

Village of Malone (Franklin County) $10,000,000 – The Village of Malone will replace or rehabilitate sewer lines and manholes to eliminate inflow and infiltration in the collection system. The project will reduce the potential for sanitary sewer overflows, which impact the water quality of the Salmon River. 

Trout Unlimited (Hamilton County), $1,398,171 – Trout Unlimited will begin Phase 3 of the South Branch Moose River Reconnection Project to address habitat fragmentation for Eastern brook trout in the Adirondacks. This project will replace six high-priority culverts in the Red River subwatershed and remove 16 culverts no longer needed along Otter Brook. This project will restore cold-water species habitat connectivity. 

City of Saratoga Springs (Saratoga County) $600,000 – The City of Saratoga Springs will replace an inadequately sized salt storage structure with a new enclosed salt storage structure to fully house all of the City's road salt. This project will address the inadequate salt storage capacity and reduce salt-laden stormwater runoff from the exposed pile. This project will protect the nearby waterbodies within the Hudson River and Saratoga Lake watersheds.  

Town of Ballston (Saratoga County), $400,000 – The Town of Ballston will purchase a vacuum truck to share with the Town of Charlton to maintain and protect stormwater infrastructure. Use of the truck will prevent stormwater pollutants from impacting the water quality of the Ballston Lake watershed. 

City of Glens Falls (Warren County), $372,000 – The City of Glen Falls will purchase a new vacuum truck to maintain over 1,500 catch basins annually. Using the truck will reduce sediment and pollutants from entering the Snook Kill-Hudson River Watershed. 

Town of Hampton (Washington County), $492,000 – The Town of Hampton will construct a salt storage facility to replace the Town's current dilapidated and undersized storage. This facility will reduce salt-laden stormwater runoff and improve water quality in the Mettawee River watershed.  

Town of Hebron (Washington County), $556,000 – The Town of Hebron will replace an existing dilapidated and undersized salt storage facility with a new salt storage structure. The new salt storage facility will have adequate space, reducing salt runoff from exposed salt piles. This project will improve water quality in Black Creek and protect groundwater from chloride pollution. 

Trout Unlimited (Washington County), $94,546 – Trout Unlimited will complete an aquatic habitat restoration project in Washington County. The project will implement a natural channel design to narrow an over-widened stretch of the Battenkill. This project will create quality spawning habitat for trout and increase channel stability. 

In addition to WQIP, the Town of Elizabethtown received over $14 million of Enhanced Water Infrastructure Improvement (WIIA) grant funding from the New York State Environmental Facilities Corporation (EFC) for their new municipal sewer and treatment plant. An Enhanced WIIA grant provides up to 50% of project costs to qualifying small, rural, and disadvantaged communities.  

EFC President and CEO Maureen A. Coleman said, “EFC is proud to work with our partners at DEC to deliver on Governor Hochul’s nation-leading clean water goals. DEC’s $10 million WQIP grant and EFC’s award of $14 million in enhanced Water Infrastructure Improvement grant funds underscores Governor Hochul’s commitment to ensuring small, rural communities have the financial support they need to protect public health and safeguard our natural resources while keeping these critical investments affordable for families and businesses.”

The WQIP funds are part of more than $249 million in grants recently announced by Governor Hochul for 181 projects statewide that help protect drinking water, update aging water infrastructure, reduce contributors to harmful algal blooms, and improve aquatic and terrestrial habitat in communities statewide. More than $206 million of the funding will support water quality improvements for environmental justice communities which may be disproportionately impacted by environmental pollution. This announcement supplements more than $10 billion in water infrastructure improvements and clean water projects investments by New York State since Governor Hochul took office.

More than $42 million of funding provided under the 2022 Clean Water, Clean Air, Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act will be used to implement 49 WQIP projects.  

View a full list of WQIP grant awards.  

Sources of Funding

WQIP is primarily supported by the state's 2022 Clean Water, Clean Air, Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act, Environmental Protection Fund (EPF), and Clean Water Infrastructure funding. The 2026-27 enacted State Budget maintains the EPF at $425 million and uses an additional $25 million from the Sustainable Future Program to provide a record $450 million for critical environmental programs such as land acquisition, farmland protection, invasive species prevention and eradication, enhanced recreational access, water quality improvement, and an aggressive environmental justice agenda.   

New York's Commitment to Clean Water  

Under Governor Hochul, New York State continues to increase its historic investments in water infrastructure. The enacted 2027 budget announced by Governor Hochul sets the national standard with a transformational $3.75 billion water infrastructure investment plan, building on $10.6 billion provided to clean water infrastructure projects since 2021. To leverage these investments and ensure ongoing coordination with local governments, the Governor supports EFC’s Community Assistance Teams in coordination with State agencies to provide proactive outreach for one-on-one consultations to help municipalities prepare strong applications. New Yorkers can view projects benefiting from DEC’s water grant programs using the interactive grant data portal.   

About the Consolidated Funding Application  

The grants were issued following completion through the Consolidated Funding Application (CFA) process. The CFA was created to streamline and expedite the grant application process. The CFA process marks a fundamental shift in the way State resources are allocated, ensuring less bureaucracy and greater efficiency to fulfill local economic development needs. The CFA serves as the single-entry point for access to economic development funding, ensuring applicants no longer have to slowly navigate multiple agencies and sources without any mechanism for coordination. Now, economic development projects use the CFA as a support mechanism to access multiple State funding sources through one application, making the process quicker, easier, and more productive. Learn more about the CFA.  

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