ATLANTA – Continuing its long-term commitment to support community-based natural resource conservation and education, Southern Company announced today that 11 projects to protect Southeastern waterways have been awarded grants through the Five Star Restoration program.

Southern Company is the Southern regional lead corporate sponsor for Five Star Restoration, a national program to support water-related conservation, in partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the National Association of Counties and the Wildlife Habitat Council.  

 

Five Star Restoration is one of three environmental stewardship programs sponsored by Southern Company in partnership with NFWF. The programs emphasize results-based collaboration with diverse partners, including environmental groups, public agencies, non-governmental organizations, landowners, schools, businesses and other stakeholders.

 

In addition to Five Star Restoration, the Southern Company-NFWF partnership supports projects to conserve birds characteristic of the South through the Power of Flight program and to restore the region’s longleaf pine ecosystem through the Longleaf Legacy/Longleaf Stewardship Fund. 

 

Southern Company this year is providing $216,163 in Five Star Restoration grants that, combined with partner-matching funds, will result in a total of $999,416 to help restore more than 149 acres of wetland, riparian and coastal habitat and 8,210 feet of riparian buffer in Alabama, Florida, Georgia and Mississippi -- the states in which the company’s retail utilities operate.

 

Since 2006, Southern Company has contributed a total of $1.42 million to 67 Five Star Restoration grants for projects that will result in an on-the-ground conservation impact of more than $5.37 million to restore more than 540 acres of wetlands and more than 69,330 feet of riparian buffer.

 

“The key to the success of the Five Star Restoration program is the inspiration, tenacity and passion of the grantees,” said Chris Hobson, Southern Company chief environmental officer. “Southern Company and its operating companies are honored to be partners in this work that is so vital to the natural health of our region.”      

 

“Each of the Five Star Restoration grants awarded this year will directly benefit critical lands in our communities,” said Jeff Trandahl, executive director and CEO of NFWF. “With the continued support of Southern Company and the engagement of our conservation partners, we’re improving the environment for both wildlife and residents in the Southeast.”

 

 

 

 

 

"EPA is proud to continue supporting the Five Star Restoration program and help promote and sponsor community-based projects to restore wetlands and streams," said EPA Region 4 Administrator Gwen Keyes Fleming. "These projects increase people's understanding of the importance of healthy wetlands and streams in our communities and significantly improve the environmental landscape across the Southeast."

The following projects have been awarded Five Star Restoration grants for 2012:

In Alabama:

Stream Bank Restoration at Turkey Creek Preserve

Recipient: Freshwater Land Trust

This project will remove a small poured-concrete dam within a 226-acre preserve on Turkey Creek and restore and stabilize the streambanks. The creek in Pinson, Ala., is home to the endangered vermilion darter, which faces a major threat from impoundments that limit its habitat. After the dam is removed, one-quarter acre will be revegetated with 500 native trees, shrubs and grass plugs to stabilize the streambanks and provide important riparian and forested habitat.

 

Dog River Watershed Habitat Restoration & Education

Recipient: Dog River Watershed Clear Water Revival

This project will remove debris affecting the water quality and native habitats in the Dog River Watershed. About 12,000 native plants will be planted to increase riparian buffers, ultimately restoring two acres of emergent fresh and saltwater wetlands. In addition, the project will remove about 5,000 pounds of trash and transplant aquatic vegetation to revitalize red-bellied turtle and West Indian manatee habitat.

 

In Florida:

Bayou Texar Oyster Reef and Marsh Grass Restoration

Recipient: Pensacola Escambia Clean Community Commission Inc.

This project will use 84 tons of oyster shells collected from local restaurants to restore oyster reef and intertidal marsh habitat along 1,200 feet of Bayou Texar in the Florida Pensacola Bay System. Marsh grasses will be planted and 79 reefs will be built with the recycled shells. The project will help to increase oyster populations, provide nursery and foraging grounds for finfish, shellfish and wading birds, and aid in filtration of stormwater runoff into the bayou. In addition, recycling the shell will reduce the amount going into the local waste stream.

 

In Georgia:

Water Conservation and Native Habitat Restoration in Atlanta

Recipient: Atlanta BeltLine Inc.

This project will implement a drainage and stormwater retention plan at a formerly contaminated industrial site located along the Atlanta BeltLine. This is part of a multi-phase project to turn a once-blighted property into an urban organic farm and sustainable habitat for native flora and fauna. At least four acres will be cleaned and treated to support rainwater storage and recycling, soil stabilization and healthy plant growth. Invasive species will be replaced with native plants – including berries (such as blueberries), grasses, shrubs and trees -- to support local birds. Citizens will have opportunities to learn organic land care best practices, such as planting native trees, grasses and berrries.

 

Peachtree Creek Confluence Restoration

Recipient: The South Fork Conservancy

This project will reclaim 31 miles of urban creeks by restoring, conserving and protecting the watershed and building low-impact trails. This is a continuation of a successful urban riparian recovery program begun by the Atlanta Botanical Garden. This project will fence off highway trash, control non-native invasives, restore three bioswales to catch highway stormwater and re-establish a biodiverse buffer along the creek, making the area more accessible and protecting water quality.

 

Dunwoody Nature Center Meadow Restoration

Recipient: Dunwoody Nature Center

This project will regrade 1.5 acres of the meadow and develop a linked system of rain gardens for stormwater collection in Dunwoody Park. The topography of the area currently causes stormwater to run down from the parking lot, neighboring baseball fields and subdivisions into Wildcat Creek, a tributary to the Chattahoochee River, causing erosion and pollution in the 11.5-acre drainage basin. The project also includes developing a facility to teach elementary through college-level students about the effects and prevention of erosion.

 

Alcovy River Greenway Restoration and Education  

Recipient: Georgia Wildlife Federation Inc.  

This project will remove exotic invasive species and plant 200 native species on approximately one mile of the riparian zone of Cornish Creek. Two rain gardens will be constructed to be both functional and educational examples of runoff control. In addition, a registry of landowners along the Alcovy River in Newton County will be updated. Designed to help connect, educate and assist landowners in making private conservation impacts, the registry will include current conservation commitments, land management options and available incentives. The project will seek to add at least 20 acres for conservation.

 

Walnut Creek Invasive Plant Control & Native Reintroduction  

Recipient: Elachee Nature Science Center

This project will control 27 acres of microstegium, an invasive annual grass, in the floodplains of the upper Walnut Creek Watershed. The project will monitor and map occurrences of microstegium, control infestation in riparian forests and plant 480 native seedlings over 516 square feet of test plots.The project also will include educational initiatives to help citizens control exotic invasive plants on their properties.

 

In Mississippi:

Invasives Eradication on Wet Pine Savanna Habitat

Recipient: Southeastern Wildlife Conservation Group

 

This project will remove invasive and unwanted species from 80 acres of savanna. Less than 5 percent of the original acreage of wet pine savanna habitat remains in the Atlantic/Gulf Coastal Plain, making it one of the most endangered habitats in the country. The project also will provide educational experiences for visitors to the Grand Bay Coastal Resources Center, the headquarters for the Grand Bay National Wildlife Refuge and the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Restoration of Henderson Point Greenway/Blueway

Recipient: Land Trust for the Mississippi Coastal Plain

This project will restore at least 5.9 acres of coastal wetland and upland forest to a pristine natural environment and improve accessibility in the Henderson Point area for low-impact recreation, where native vegetation was destroyed and invasives prevailed following Hurricane Katrina. The project will employ 77 volunteers to remove debris and invasive species, plant 250 native trees, construct a quarter-mile trail and install benches and a bicycle rack. Students will monitor the land for one year after the work is complete, removing invasive species that have returned, helping maintain the trail and watering trees during periods of drought.  

 

Bayou Auguste Restoration

Recipient: Mississippi State University

This project will enhance nearly one-half acre of tidal marsh habitat along Bayou Auguste in the Hope VI neighborhood of East Biloxi, Miss. Residents and public agencies have identified restoring bayous as important for ecological, economic, social and environmental health. An existing partnership will undertake restoration and outreach work with the following goals: improve habitat and water quality; enhance visual appeal; and increase citizen stewardship through education and outreach activities.

 

More information about these projects, Five Star Restoration and other Southern Company environmental stewardship activities is available at http://www.southerncompany.com/corporateresponsibility/stewardship/.

 

With 4.4 million customers and more than 43,000 megawatts of generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier energy company serving the Southeast. A leading U.S. producer of electricity, Southern Company owns electric utilities in four states and a growing competitive generation company, as well as fiber optics and wireless communications. Southern Company brands are known for excellent customer service, high reliability and retail electric prices that are below the national average. Southern Company also is continually ranked among the top utilities in Fortune's annual World's Most Admired Electric and Gas Utility rankings. Visit our website at www.southerncompany.com.

 

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) protects and restores our nation’s wildlife and habitats. Created by Congress in 1984, NFWF directs public conservation dollars to the most pressing environmental needs and matches those investments with private contributions. NFWF works with government, nonprofit and corporate partners to find solutions for the most intractable conservation challenges. In 27 years, NFWF has funded more than 4,000 organizations and committed more than $2 billion to conservation projects. Learn more at www.nfwf.org.