This agreement is to fund the state of illinois's water quality management planning program to improve impaired water and protect unimpaired waters across the state by conducting planning that informs…

EPA Region 5 awarded the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency $1.947 million on October 1, 2025, under the Water Quality Management Planning program (CFDA 66.454) to fund water quality management planning across Illinois through September 30, 2029.

The award supports characterization and documentation of waterbody quality and pollution-related impacts on human health and the environment, development of strategies and plans to protect high-quality waters and restore degraded waters, and enhancement of collaboration among key watershed stakeholders. Expected outputs include implementation of areawide water quality management plans, development of watershed-based plan components meeting EPA's nine elements, and designs for best management practice implementation under the Illinois Streambank Stabilization Program.

Approximately 55 percent of the funding passes through to Illinois's three active areawide planning agencies, which perform water quality management planning activities and jointly develop workplans with the state recipient. In accordance with Clean Water Act Section 205(j)(3), the recipient must jointly develop workplans with and pass through at least 40 percent of funding to regional or interstate watershed management planning agencies unless EPA approves a waiver request.

The award is supported by funding provided under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. EPA has conditionally approved the current workplan, permitting the recipient to incur costs on eligible activities associated to approved workplan components up to $1.023 million. Place of performance is Illinois.

This agreement is to fund the state of illinois's water quality management planning program to improve impaired water and protect unimpaired waters across the state by conducting planning that informs and supports implementation of clean water act programs. In accordance with clean water act section 205(j)(3), unless a waiver request is approved by EPA, the recipient will jointly develop workplans with and passthrough at least 40% of funding to regional or interstate watershed management planning agencies. This agreement is supported by funding provided under the infrastructure investment and jobs act (IIJA) (PL 117-58). EPA has conditionally approved the current workplan to allow the recipient to proceed to work on approved workplan components. The recipient may incur costs on eligible activities associated with the approved workplan components up to $1,023,907. Activities:the activities to be performed include the following water quality management planning activities: the characterization and documentation of the quality of waterbodies and pollution-related impacts on human health and the environment, the development of strategies and plans to protect high-quality waters and restore degraded waters, and the enhancement of collaboration among key watershed stakeholders.subrecipient:approximately 55% of the award will go directly to illinois' three active areawide planning agencies that perform water quality management planning activities through the 604(b) program. These areawide agencies will work together to implement the illinois water quality management program. See the workplan for additional details. Outcomes:expected outputs (planning, design, and/or capacity building) may include, but are not limited to, the following: implementation of the APA areawide water quality management plans, development of components of wbps that meet US EPA's nine elements, and designs for best management practice implementation under the illinois streambank stabilization restoration program. Expected outcomes may include, but are not limited to, the following: increased implementation of approved wbps to reduce and/or prevent NPS pollution to illinois' water resources, increased collaboration among illinois' watershed stakeholders to prevent both point and NPS pollution, and increased adoption of green infrastructure, water and other environmentally innovative activities to address NPS and point source pollution.