The Dirt and Gravel Roads program is designed to fund environmentally sound maintenance of unpaved roadways that have been identified as sources of sediment pollution.  Signed into law in April 1997 as  Section 9106 of the PA Vehicle Code, the State Conservation Commission allocates Dirt & Gravel Roads Maintenance Funds to County Conservation Districts.  The funds are available to local municipalities that maintain dirt and gravel roads.  Also, someone from the applying entity must have completed the Environmentally Sensitive Maintenance Training, a two-day course that includes modules on drainage, road maintenance techniques, erosion prevention & sediment control, bank stabilization, roadside vegetation management, and grant procedures.

The Northumberland County Conservation District Quality Assurance Board (QAB), which consists of a District Board Member, NRCS staff member, and a Waterways Conservation Officer from the PA Fish & Boat Commission. accepts and reviews applications each fall.  This is so contracts can be signed and work begun in the spring. 

For more information on the Dirt and Gravel Roads Program, visit the Center for Dirt and Gravel Roads website.  For Northumberland County Dirt & Gravel Roads Program information, contact Rob Thomas by email or 570-286-7114 ext. 4.