This grant award agreement provides financial assistance and support to the commonwealth of virginia to implement its 319 nonpoint source management program, focusing on watersheds with water…

The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VDEQ) has been awarded a $3,154,750 formula grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 3 under the Nonpoint Source Implementation Grants program (CFDA 66.460). The grant will fund a 5-year project to implement the Commonwealth of Virginia's Section 319 Nonpoint Source Management Program, focusing on improving water quality in impaired watersheds through structural and non-structural best management practices (BMPs), watershed planning, monitoring, technology demonstrations, and education/outreach programs.

The grant will support 9 projects to reduce bacteria, nutrient, and sediment loads, including on-the-ground BMP implementation, coordination with partner agencies, and nonpoint source management planning. A $60,000 subaward will be made to the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe to host the 2024 Northeast Regional Water Summit for Tribes and Nations. The anticipated outcomes include significant reductions in nitrogen, phosphorus, sediment, and bacteria loads, ultimately leading to the restoration of impaired waterbodies and attainment of water quality standards.

This grant award agreement provides financial assistance and support to the commonwealth of virginia to implement its 319 nonpoint source management program, focusing on watersheds with water quality impairments caused by polluted runoff from nonpoint sources. Nonpoint source implementation projects include a variety of structural and non-structural best management practices (bmps), watershed planning, monitoring, technology demonstrations, and a variety of education/outreach programs.activities:the proposed work in this agreement includes nine (9) projects that will support bacteria, nutrient, and sediment load reductions, coordination with partner agencies and nonpoint source management planning. Nonpoint source implementation projects will be conducted by both the state grant recipient as well as subrecipients, and include a variety of structural and non-structural best management practices (bmps), monitoring, technology demonstrations, and education/outreach programs. The projects to be funded with this grant award will develop and implement projects and bmps primarily in the areas of conservation planning, nutrient management, pollutant load reductions, watershed plan implementation, and ditch/wetland/stream restoration.subrecipient:the activities to be implemented through subawards to multiple recipients will primarily include the implementation of on the ground best management practices aimed at improving water quality in nonpoint source impaired waterbodies as guided by EPA accepted watershed-based plans. Of the $1,759,850 in total subawards, a subaward of $60,000 will be made to the saint regis mohawk tribe for the 2024 northeast regional water summit for tribes and nations, which is funded by a special solicitation with supplemental funding.outcomes:the anticipated deliverables and expected outcomes include pollutant load reductions in watersheds with clean water act section 319 approved watershed-based plans, ultimately leading to restoration of waterbodies and attainment of water quality standards. IT is anticipated that BMP installations such as livestock stream exclusions and septic improvements will result in the reduction of millions of pounds of nitrogen and phosphorus, hundreds of thousands of tons of sediment and a significant amount of bacteria from entering targeted watersheds. Additional anticipated deliverables include watershed roundtable support, a northeast water training for tribes and nations (funded by a $60,000 special solicitation supplement), technical assistance and database development. Direct beneficiaries of this program include all commonwealth residents and occupants, both permanent and temporary.