This action approves an award in the amount of $191,801 to provide funding to the north carolina department of environmental quality

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded a $191,801 Cooperative Agreement under the Regional Wetland Program Development Grants (CFDA 66.461) program to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ). The funding will support the update and revision of the "Field Guide to North Carolina Wetlands," including updates to wetland type categories, threats, photographs, plant taxonomy, and the National Wetland Plant List. Additionally, the project will reinitiate stakeholder engagement, host virtual meetings, and finalize the new North Carolina Wetland Program Plan for 2026-2030. The goal is to define wetland monitoring goals and objectives, and to use the updated plan as a communication tool to garner support and encourage partnerships to accomplish North Carolina's wetland conservation goals. The award period is from October 1, 2024 to December 31, 2026.

Specifically, the recipient will update the 'field guide to north carolina wetlands' guide will update wetland type categories, threats to wetlands, photographs, suggested sites to see, plant taxonomy, and national wetland plant list (nwpl) ratings. The field guide updates will also add quantified values of wetlands, a map of sites to see, and reformatting to match the recently updated 'common wetland plants of north carolina' guide.activities:the activities include updating and revising the north carolina wetland program plan (NC WPP) will entail 1) reinitiating communications with stakeholder group members and distributing the expiring document for review, 2) hosting virtual stakeholder group meeting(s) to discuss proposed edits to the expiring NC WPP, and 3) finalizing the new NC WPP document and distributing IT to stakeholder group members for their final reviewsubrecipient:subawards with state temporary solutions to hire temp employeesoutcomes:the anticipated deliverables include update field guide and printing, semi-annual and final reports, hosting stakeholder meetings to review field guide, and updating NC WPP for 2026-2030 plan, the expected outcomes include define wetland monitoring goals and objectives by revising the NC WPP to include current NC division of water resources wetland program goals and suggested activities to meet these goals. The NC WPP will serve as a communication tool with the public and other interested agencies to garner support for and encourage partnerships to accomplish NC wetland goals. The intended beneficiaries include citizens in the state of north carolina.