The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) yesterday announced that it is awarding over $179,000 to three organizations for the restoration of the Proctor Creek Watershed in Atlanta, Ga.
Nationally, $2.1 million was awarded to 36 organizations in 17 states and Puerto Rico to help protect and restore urban waters, improve water quality, and support community revitalization and other local priorities.
The funding is through EPA’s Urban Waters program, which supports communities in their efforts to access, improve and benefit from their urban waters and the surrounding land. Urban waters include canals, rivers, lakes, wetlands, aquifers, estuaries, bays and oceans in urbanized areas.
EPA is awarding grants ranging from $40,000 to $60,000 for projects taking place in areas that align with the 18 designated Urban Waters Federal Partnership locations. The Urban Waters Federal Partnership is a partnership of 14 federal agencies working to reconnect urban communities with their waterways by improving coordination among federal agencies and collaborating with community-led revitalization efforts.
All funded projects work to advance environmental justice in their communities, and focus on one of the following three categories: community greening and green infrastructure, communities and water quality data, or integration of water quality and community development in planning.
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Press Release, July 18, 2014