Schuylkill River Heritage Area Awarded $226K Grant

The Schuylkill River Heritage Area has received a $226,000 Community Conservation Partnership Grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) to benefit Schuylkill River Trail initiatives and recreation and conservation programs. 

The funding will help support some of the Heritage Area’s most popular events, including the annual Schuylkill River Sojourn, a 112-mile guided canoe/kayak trip down the river, and the annual Scenes of the Schuylkill juried art show.

A portion of the money will be dedicated to the continuation of the Schuylkill Highlands Conservation Landscape Initiative (CLI) mini-grant program. That program, established in 2010, will give grants to agencies and organizations for nature-based tourism and conservation projects and programs that are located within the Schuylkill Highlands CLI. The Schuylkill Highlands is an area encompassing parts of the Schuylkill River watershed and the Pennsylvania Highlands, both landscapes with nationally significant resources.

Included in the grant award is funding for the Schuylkill River Heritage Area to rework its management plan, which was adopted in 2000, when it was designated a National Heritage Area by Congress. It also contains money for the annual Schuylkill Watershed Congress, an event which advances the best available information and techniques for protecting and restoring watersheds. The conference will take place onMarch 15 at Montgomery County Community College West Campus in Pottstown this year.

Additional monies will cover Schuylkill River Trail initiatives, development of a smart phone application, and the Schuylkill River Heritage Area’s Heritage Towns and Tours program, which assists Schuylkill River Trail communities in attracting trail users to downtowns and attractions.

“This grant award allows us to continue implementing projects and programs that ultimately benefit the regional economy by expanding cultural, environmental and recreational attractions in communities throughout the five-county Heritage Area,” said Kurt Zwikl, executive director for the Schuylkill River Heritage Area.

DCNR is the primary source of state support for Pennsylvania recreation, parks and conservation initiatives. Grant funding from DCNR assists hundreds of communities and organizations across Pennsylvania to plan, acquire, and develop recreation and park facilities, create trails and conserve open space.