Pigeon River Fund awards more than $350,000 in water quality grants

These grants were submitted for funding prior to Hurricane Helene. These organizations are engaged in important ongoing water quality efforts; funding will support projects and work that will aid in recovery, restoration and protection of streams and banks in three WNC counties.

The most recent Pigeon River Fund grant recipients are:

$35,000 to Asheville Botanical Garden to enhance native plantings, wildlife habitat, visitor access, and educational features at the confluence of Reed and Glenn’s Creeks, which run through the property.

$35,000 to Asheville GreenWorks toward design work for Hominy Creek Greenway aimed at completing the restoration of the park and its trail.

$50,000 to Asheville GreenWorks to enhance and expand its Youth Environmental Leadership and StreamKeeper programs.

$45,000 to Environmental Quality Institute to help fund its VWIN and SMIE programs, supporting volunteer stream monitoring in Haywood, Buncombe, and Madison counties.

$26,250 to Haywood Waterways Association to assist with restoration of approximately 600 linear feet of Shingle Cove Branch, a tributary to Richland Creek.

$50,000 to Haywood Waterways Association for 2025 program and administrative support.

$13,454 to Haywood Waterways Association for a stormwater control project at Grace Church in Downtown Waynesville.

$17,500 to Junaluska Sanitary District for repairs needed along the Cedar Park residential community adjacent to the Pigeon River.

$50,000 to Mountain Valleys RC&D Council for its Ivy River Partners program that addresses water quality in the Ivy River Watershed and Madison County waterways.

$30,000 to Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy toward the permanent protection of 293 acres of productive farm and forest land along Scenic Byway 209 and Betsy’s Gap Road.

The next application deadline for qualifying nonprofits in Buncombe, Haywood and Madison counties is March 15, 2025.  Applications and instructions are available at www.cfwnc.org.

The Pigeon River Fund was established through an agreement between Carolina Power & Light (now Duke Energy) and the State of North Carolina.  CFWNC administers the grant program.  For information about the Pigeon River Fund, contact Senior Program Officer Tara Scholtz at 828-367-9913.

The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina (CFWNC) works with families, businesses and nonprofits to strengthen communities through the creation of charitable funds and strategic grantmaking. A permanent charitable resource, the Foundation manages over 1,300 funds and facilitated $24.8 million in grants last year bringing total giving to more than $387 million since its founding in 1978. CFWNC is deeply engaged in hurricane relief and recovery efforts through grantmaking from its Emergency and Disaster Response Fund. Learn more at www.cfwnc.org.