HARRISBURG – Gov. Tom Corbett announced on Tuesday, May 13, that the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is now accepting applications for the Growing Greener Grant Program for watershed protection. Local governments, non-profits, schools, municipal authorities and watershed associations are eligible to apply.

“Each year, these grants are offered to deserving environmental stewards across Pennsylvania,” Corbett said. “The infusion of Act 13 dollars has given this program a deserved boost, so that more positive environmental projects can take shape.”

Act 13 impact fee revenues are expected to provide more than $7.8 million into the Environmental Stewardship Fund to support the Growing Greener program, a state news release said. A series of bond issues and a fee on waste entering landfills also fund Growing Greener. The infusion of impact fee revenues restores funding levels to where they stood before the fund was obligated to pay debt service on the bond issues, the release said.

A total of $16 million is available through the Pennsylvania Growing Greener program for projects to improve water quality in impaired waterways or to protect water quality where the watershed may be threatened by non-point sources, such as agricultural or urban runoff or acid mine drainage. Approved projects for this section of the grant solicitation must be completed by Dec. 31, 2018.

The state works with watershed associations and the federal government to list certain priority watersheds in need of restoration, identified through the development of an approved Section 319 Nonpoint Source Watershed Implementation Plan. The federal Water Pollution Control Act will provide $3 million for projects to support restoration of 35 such watersheds across the state. Projects for this section of the grant solicitation must be completed by Sept. 30, 2018.

For more information and to download a grant application, visit www.dep.state.pa.us and click the “Growing Greener” button or enter keyword: Growing Greener.