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EPA awards $6.8 million grant to Pennsylvania to fight pollution from stormwater runoff

Release Date: 10/15/2004
Contact Information: Roy Seneca (215) 814-5567

Contact: Roy Seneca (215) 814-5567
PHILADELPHIA - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has awarded $6,776,800 to help control stormwater runoff throughout Pennsylvania.

The EPA grant, which was matched with $4,517,867 from the state, supports the state’s nonpoint source water pollution control program, which includes numerous stormwater projects designed to protect Pennsylvania 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. The projects supported by this funding are vital to protect and improve water quality for drinking water, recreational activities and to preserve the natural habitat,” said Donald S. Welsh, administrator for EPA’s mid-Atlantic Region

Stormwater 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. In Pennsylvania, the major causes of nonpoint source pollution are farming, mining and land development activities.

Projects supported by the program will help improve farm management practices to reduce nutrients and sediment from entering nearby water bodies, aid in the treatment of streams affected by acid mine drainage from active or abandon coal mines, and reduce stormwater runoff from urban and suburban development.