GRANVILLE – Last week, Sen. Don Humason and Rep. Nick Boldyga announced a $25,000 grant for the town of Granville, through the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game’s DER (Division of Ecological Restoration). The grant is directly through the DER’s Culvert Replacement Municipal Assistance program, which is supported by the DER’s capital budget.
The culvert program is geared towards improving community preparedness for major storms, protecting fisheries and habitats, and promoting any investments in infrastructure fit for the climate.
Granville Town Hall. (WNG File Photo)
Both local legislators were happy to assist Granville in securing the $25,000 grant.
“I am glad to be able to work with the Baker-Polito Administration to continue providing support for our communities,” said Boldyga. “These projects will not only help fish and wildlife habitats, but will also improve our local roads and infrastructure.”
“Thank you to the Mass Department of Fish and Game for providing this funding to the Town of Granville,” said Humason. “This grant will help Granville continue to repair its infrastructure while improving ecological issues in the area.”
The $25,000 of funding will allow Granville to conduct field-data collection and analysis for the culvert replacement project on Phelon Brook.
The culvert replacement project has been selected due to the stream crossing standards that DEP adopted in 2014 as part of the Wetlands Protection Act. The stream crossing standards make sure all municipalities apply for a permitting process if they have a brook in their town or city that crosses under a road.
Carrie Banks, who’s the Grant Administrator for the program under the Fish and Wildlife, explained her objective when working with the town.
“We’re trying to help municipalities update their stream crossings, which tend to be bridges,” said Banks.
Adding that the $25,000 grant will allow the Town of Granville to pay for assessing the Phelon Brook and hiring an engineering firm, Banks sees the funding as a great opportunity for the municipality to progress through the project.
“The goal of the grant is to gather enough information,” said Banks.
Granville DPW Director Doug Roberts acknowledged that it can be difficult to fix a culvert or anything else near a stream when it goes underneath the road or bridge. The funding will only make that process easier for the town.
“We’re very thankful for the money and I think it’s a great program,” said Roberts.
In a press release from Rep. Nick Boldyga, it mentioned that about half of the estimated 30,000 culverts in Massachusetts are used as barriers to fish and wildlife. This is because most culverts are undersized or not properly positioned.
Further into the release it notes that undersized culverts can be a serious risk to public safety. If there is high-intensity rainfall at a frequent rate, culverts can cause flood waters to overtop roads and allow road closures to occur.
