Efforts to improve trout habitat on the famed Batten Kill in southern Vermont will continue this year with the potential for $20,000 in grants.
Since 2006, the Batten Kill Watershed Alliance has been adding woody debris and slate rocks to the river to protect brown and brook trout from flooding and create shade and places for them to feed.
Trout Unlimited has awarded the project $7,500 dollars.
The group’s local chapter plans to donate $5,000 which will be matched by a 60 percent federal grant from Green Mountain National Forest, adding up to over $20,000.
Former executive director of the Batten Kill Watershed Alliance Cynthia Browning says the group will work to stop erosion, increase buffer zones and stabilize the banks.