Sandusky River Watershed Coalition

Our mission is to provide leadership for the conservation and enhancement of the Sandusky River watershed and its natural resources through community-based planning and education.

Dr. Dave Baker (former Director of Heidelberg College Water Quality Laboratory) started the group in 1997 as a way to increase community activity to protect and improve the river through watershed protection. We started with a 319 mini-grant pilot project for developing a community based watershed management plan. One of the participating agencies, WSOS Community Action Commission offered to write a grant to hire a coordinator for the group. A $122,066 grant was awarded for a 1/2 time coordinator for 2 years from the Lake Erie Protection Fund to develop and implement a watershed management plan. A Watershed Coordinator grant was awarded by ODNR to fund a full time watershed coordinator over 6 years.

The group now has about 400 participants. We currently have three committees: Land Use & Resource Management; Education & Development; and Water Supply & Wastewater. We have held grants to provide education and to implement Best Management Practices that provide economic and environmental benefits for our watershed.

Sandusky River Watershed Coalition has two state-endorsed watershed action plans for the Honey Creek watershed and the Sandusky River - Tiffin watershed.