$0The West Central Indiana Watershed Alliance, a function of the Sullivan County Soil & Water Conservation District was awarded a new IDEM 319 Grant for the Turtle Creek, Turman Creek, and Kelley Bayou watersheds.  This three-year grant began in August 2013.  The “TTK’ Grant refers to the Turtle Creek, Turman Creek, and Kelley Bayou watersheds of western Sullivan County and an extreme southern portion of Vigo County.  The grant was awarded for water quality improvements in these areas.  The grant, totaling $263,700 with a commitment of $177,500 in matching funds for a total of $441,200 began in the fall of 2013 and will end in 2016, after three years.  The TTK Watershed area comprises 115,670 acres total in Sullivan and Vigo counties and is known for its agriculture and wildlife.  This is a continuation of the original project of The Partnership for Turtle Creek group who had been awarded a Section 319 grant in the early 2000’s.$0 $0Phase One of the three-year grant will be to form an Advisory Committee, determine critical areas, write a comprehensive Watershed Management Plan, and complete monthly water monitoring.  Once this component has been completed, Phase Two will begin.  This portion of the grant will utilize cost-share funds for best management practices in critical areas of the watershed.  Some of the practices will include cover crops, precision ag, no-till planter upgrades, tree plantings, buffer establishment, livestock watering systems with exclusion fence, and grassed waterways. $0 $0Also part of the grant is a water monitoring program of 29 stream sites within the watershed, set to begin during the spring of 2014.  These sites will be monitored for turbidity, color, odor, temperature, total dissolved solids, salinity, dissolved oxygen, pH, specific conductivity, flow, phosphorus, nitrate + nitrite, total suspended solids, and e. Coli.  Both upstream and downstream locations will be monitored with a variety of nearby land use such as forest, pasture, and cropland.  Twenty sites are funded by the TTK grant while the additional nine sites are being paid for by Hoosier Energy, including three sites for pesticide/herbicide testing.  This will establish a baseline data set, which can be retested in a few years to determine improvement, if any.  Macroinvertebrate and Quality Habitat Evaluation Index assessments will also be completed annually, with possible additional evaluations to be considered for the Kelley Bayou oxbow area.$0 $0The TTK Advisory Committee meetings are held at the Hoosier Energy Environmental Education Center. These meetings are very important when it comes to determining critical areas within the watershed which in turn determines where cost-share dollars will be prioritized.  Meetings are open to the public and community participation is encouraged.    $0 $0The Sullivan County SWCD & WCIWA will also be applying for an additional 319 Grant to follow the current TTK grant cycle. The proposed 'TTK Implementation Grant' will be a three year grant focusing on the installation of best management practices, such as cover crops, no-till planter upgrades, grassed waterways, and buffer strips.  More information continues to be available.$0