Richland Soil and Water Conservation District awards grants

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The Richland Soil and Water Conservation District has awarded three conservation education mini-grants to three local education organizations totaling $2,000 to support environmental efforts this spring.

The conservation district has now funded 75 county youth conservation projects since 2012.

The grants are:

• Satchel Ford Elementary School received $1,000 to expand its raised-bed gardens and to install and outdoor handwashing station to improve biosecurity and promote farm-to-school education. Students currently maintain six beds for growing herbs, potatoes, summer squash and winter greens. They plan to add chickens to the environment this spring.
• The REACH Homeschool Group received $500 to revitalize a wildlife habitat at Harbison State Forest Education Center.
• Westwood High School received $500 to convert a grassy area into a habitat for caterpillars, butterflies and bees.

The grants are offered to Richland County K-12 educational institutions twice each school year. The next application deadline is this fall.