BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – The salt you spread on the driveway could make its way into Lake Champlain, but stormwater diversion efforts can help stem the flow. The Blue stormwater program aims to make prevention affordable.
Blue is a joint effort of Lake Champlain Sea Grant, the University of Vermont, Fitzgerald Environmental Associates, and the cities of Burlington and Williston.
Under the program, residents of those communities can sign up for free evaluations of their property. The Blue team assesses them for ways to reduce stormwater runoff and pollution. Then, residents can apply for rebates to install things like rain gardens, permeable driveways, or gutter redirects.
The program’s Michelle Lockhart says this helps boost waterway health and home resilience. “I think that the real benefit of this program is we’re not only trying to catch stormwater, but we can also help make homes more resilient to increased rainfall,” she said.
Burlington residents can apply for up to $2,000.
Williston residents up to $1,200.
Blue has completed 45 projects so far. The Blue team says it’s open to partnering with other cities. Blue isn’t running site evaluations right now, but you can hop on the spring waitlist.
