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Pennsylvania gets EPA grant to control storm water runoff

Release Date: 7/25/2003
Contact Information: Roy Seneca (215) 814-5567

Contact: Roy Seneca 215-814-5567
PHILADELPHIA – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded a $6.85 million grant to help control pollution from storm water runoff throughout Pennsylvania.

The EPA grant will be combined with $4.56 million in matching funds from the state to support numerous storm water projects to protect and improve Pennsylvania’s waterways.

“EPA is pleased to be a partner in Pennsylvania’s aggressive approach to cleaning up waterways that have been impaired by storm water related runoff,” said Donald S. Welsh, regional administrator for EPA’s mid-Atlantic region.

Storm water pollution – sometimes called non-point source pollution – is caused by rainfall or snowmelt moving over or through the ground and carrying natural or human-made pollutants into lakes, streams, rivers, and other water bodies. Some of the projects supported with the funding include:

• Treatment programs to improve water quality in waterways that have been impaired by runoff from abandoned coal mines – commonly referred to as acid mine drainage.

• Implementing agricultural best management practices to reduce nutrients and sediment runoff into nearby streams.

• Planning and implementation of specific watershed based plans – known as total maximum daily loads or TMDLs – that are designed to control the discharge of specific pollutants into specific waterways.

• Funding to support the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s effort to educate the public on the importance of controlling storm water runoff.

• Stream restoration work on waterways that have been damaged by runoff.

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