The federal government has awarded a grant to help Benton County inventory their riparian and wetland areas. The 60-thousand dollar grant is from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It will allow Benton County to complete a two-year project aimed at identifying wetland and riparian areas. Benton County spokesman Rick Osborn says the funding comes at a time when budgets are tight.

Rick Osborn: “This is something that the county is concerned about. And of course it’s just crucially important that you protect and identify your wetland and riparian areas. But at the same time, this added resource really allows us to pursue this project and to maybe do a little more with it than we could otherwise.”

The project will focus on areas in Benton County that are zoned for development. A series of community meetings will be held this month to include input from landowners and other stakeholders.

Community meetings are scheduled for the following locations and dates:

*Philomath: 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 10 at the Benton County Historical Museum upstairs meeting room

*Lewisburg: 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 12 at the Mountain View School library

*Alsea: 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 16 at the Community Center library meeting room

*Monroe: 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 17 at the Monroe High School library

*Wren: 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 18 at the Wren Community Center.

Information also is available online, at www.co.benton.or.us/cd/riparian