MEADVILLE, Pa. – April 1, 2008 — The Department of Environmental Protection has awarded the Center for Economic and Environmental Development (CEED) at Allegheny College an Environmental Stewardship and Watershed Protection grant in the amount of $25,000. CEED will use the grant to undertake an environmental assessment of the Mill Run watershed.
Funding will be used to hire an environmental consultant who will work with Allegheny faculty and students and numerous community partners on the preparation of the environmental assessment. In addition CEED will host community meetings to explore the potential development of a Mill Run walking and biking trail.
Upon completion of the assessment, CEED will develop an environmental report that can be used to determine economic development opportunities and aesthetic improvements along Mill Run — from Shadybrook Park through the city of Meadville to its confluence with French Creek — as well as provide a guide for future land use planning considerations and restoration projects.
“Our goal is to provide a comprehensive environmental report, which then will be used to revitalize and restore Mill Run, placing it at the heart of our community and demonstrating that environmental restoration can stimulate economic and community development,” said CEED director Amara Geffen. “We anticipate that our recommendations will identify specific storm water management projects along Mill Run to demonstrate innovative solutions that combine ecological practice, landscape architecture and environmental art. We recently collaborated with the French Creek Project to develop a plan for this sort of project at East End School, where a sculptural wetland was designed to mitigate flooding.”
Engaging the community will play a key role in developing the plan, Geffen noted.
“Residents and community stakeholders will be engaged consistently at each stage of the environmental assessment and master plan processes,” she said. “We'll do this through targeted community meetings that will assist in bringing neighborhood groups together to articulate needs and goals for the sites to be studied.”
Partnering with CEED in the project will be the City of Meadville, the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Meadville, the Crawford Conservation District, the Senior Environmental Corps, Creek Connections and the Meadville-Western Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce.
BACKGROUND ON CEED
CEED was established in 1997 by faculty from the Environmental Science Department at Allegheny College. In collaboration with community partners, CEED faculty select projects for students to work on to serve and strengthen the communities around the college. About 100 students a year participate in CEED, spending at least one semester creating innovative approaches to environmental stewardship, environmental education and regional revitalization. Students are given the opportunity to work in the community through classes, seminars, internships, work-study jobs and independent study projects. CEED engages more than 200 regional agencies, government organizations, schools and businesses in promoting sustainability. CEED projects involve and educate not only Allegheny College students—our country's future civic and environmental leaders—but also citizens of all ages and backgrounds, from kindergartners through CEOs.
