GROTON, NY (607NewsNow) – New York is supporting infrastructure work in Groton.

On Oct. 30, Governor Kathy Hochul announced over $31 million to protect and improve water quality in NYS DEC Region 7, which includes Tompkins, Cortland, Tioga, Cayuga, Broome, Onondaga, Oswego, and Madison Counties.

The money comes from the DEC’s Water Quality Improvement Project (WQIP) grant program. The Tompkins County Highway Department was one of the awardees, winning over $6 million for multiple aquatic connectivity projects. One of those projects is in the Town of Groton, where highway crews will replace two old, undersized metal culverts causing erosion.

“WQIP grants help make local projects possible, like upgrading sewage and water treatment and conveyance systems, acquiring critical open space to protect drinking water at the source, investing in resilient waterways that improve flood control capacity while enhancing fish and wildlife habitat, and building structural solutions to control pollution that prevents fouling of our shared waters,” said DEC Region 7 Director Dereth Glance.

The new equipment will have a natural streambed bottom that properly aligns with the stream channel. Officials say it will improve water flow in the Owasco Lake watershed.

You can check out all of the projects across the Empire State here.