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$1.17M in Wetland Program Development Grants Awarded

Release Date: 11/25/2008
Contact Information: Kris Lancaster, (913) 551-7557, lancaster.kris@epa.gov

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Environmental News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Kansas City, Kan., Nov. 25, 2008) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded six grants, totaling $1,174,834, for wetland protection and management projects in Region 7.

Region 7 Administrator John Askew said, "Protecting our nation's wetlands is a top priority for EPA. These funds will help to achieve environmental improvements in our local watersheds."

EPA seeks to develop and refine effective, comprehensive programs for wetland protection and management. The Wetland Program Development Grants, initiated in 1990, provide state, tribal and local governments an opportunity to conduct projects that promote the coordination of research to prevent, reduce and eliminate water pollution.

Curators of the University of Missouri, Columbia, Mo. - $399,995: This project will demonstrate the benefit of riparian buffers for aquatic resource health. It will assess buffer width and establish connectivity of the stream to the adjacent wetland.

Curators of the University of Missouri, Kansas City, Mo. - $80,600: The project will detect, map and assess vulnerable wetlands in relation to impervious surface impact in major watersheds in the Kansas City metropolitan area based on satellite remote sensing and geographic information systems analysis.

Kansas Water Office, Topeka, Kan. - $177,400: The purpose of the project is to develop a comprehensive process for identifying, assessing and prioritizing wetlands, streams and riparian areas.

Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Jefferson City, Mo. - $266,600: The project will build a wetlands nutrient monitoring program and develop biologically-based nutrient enrichment assessment tools.

Mid-America Regional Council, Kansas City, Mo. - $135,000: The project will provide a three-year training and policy development initiative in the Kansas City area on watershed planning and wetland conservation with an emphasis on the role of green infrastructure.

Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Okla. - $115,239: The project will evaluate the degree of pesticide contamination in the High Plains wetlands in Nebraska and Kansas and assess the effects of land use practices, such as cropland agriculture, native grassland and the Conservation Reserve Program, to prevent pesticide contamination.