Project Grant 953A0019

This Project Grant award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 3 provides $1,987,000.00 in funding to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to implement a program of voluntary testing and reduction for lead in drinking water at local schools and child care centers. The award is funded under the EPA's Voluntary School and Child Care Lead Testing and Reduction Grant Program (CFDA 66.444).

Through this grant, DEP will use the EPA's 3Ts guidance (Training, Testing, and Taking Action) to sample and test for lead, identify potential lead sources, communicate results, and provide assistance for appropriate lead reduction actions. DEP will engage in an outreach campaign to garner interest in the voluntary program, prioritizing schools and child care centers in known environmental justice and low-income areas. DEP will also develop and distribute educational information on lead and the importance of testing to school districts and child care facilities not already testing under the Lead and Copper Rule. Subsequent to the voluntary testing, eligible schools and child care facilities that have tested in exceedance of the remediation trigger level will be eligible for grant funding to support lead remediation and reduction activities.