The State of Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (IDEQ) received a $266,665 Project Grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 10 under the Underground Storage Tank (UST) Prevention, Detection, and Compliance Program (CFDA 66.804) for the period July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. This non-competitive award supports Idaho's state UST program to prevent petroleum and hazardous substance releases through comprehensive leak detection, prevention, and enforcement activities.
Under this grant, IDEQ delivers multiple products and services to achieve program compliance and environmental protection objectives. Key deliverables include conducting approximately 300 full compliance UST inspections, investigating and enforcing violations of UST technical standards, completing formal enforcement actions against non-compliant operators, and pursuing compliance assistance and outreach activities with UST owners and operators. Additionally, IDEQ manages program direction through policy development and updates, maintains the state UST database and operator training program, oversees UST installation and closure activities, provides staff training, and conducts joint performance evaluations with the EPA. These activities position Idaho's program to eventually operate independently of federal oversight while protecting state residents and environmental resources from contamination risks associated with underground storage tanks.