ATHENS — UGA will receive $8.8 million over three years to help farmers restore streams and rivers through the Southern Waters Framework.

Release:

Athens, Ga. – The University of Georgia will receive $8.8 million over three years to help farmers restore streams and rivers on their land through the Working Lands for Wildlife’s Southern Waters Framework.

Three colleges — the Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources, the Odum School of Ecology and the College of Engineering — will join with two UGA centers — the River Basin Center and the Institute for Resilient Infrastructure Systems — to host the program.

UGA will deploy nearly two dozen biologists and engineers across the Southeast to address challenges on working lands, problems such as erosion from fields, loss of forest cover and degraded dams. They will work with landowners to implement conservation practices that improve water quality and aquatic ecosystem health, including streambank restoration, improved grazing and crop management, and invasive species control.

“I am most excited about joining a community at UGA that is deeply committed to connecting science with action,” said Josselyn Lucas, the Working Lands for Wildlife’s Southern Waters Framework coordinator. “This alignment ensures that our work is grounded in both research excellence and practical outcomes for people and wildlife. Most importantly, this partnership will provide the research support and expertise we need to ensure that the conservation we are delivering through USDA programs is truly effective and produces measurable results.”

Writer: Allison Floyd, alfloyd@uga.edu 

Contact: UGA Media Relations, media@uga.edu