Section 320 of the CWA authorizes the administrator of the EPA to convene management conferences to develop comprehensive conservation and management plans for estuaries of national significance…

Section 320 of the CWA authorizes the administrator of the EPA to convene management conferences to develop comprehensive conservation and management plans for estuaries of national significance that are threatened by pollution, development, or overuse. The agreement provides funding to corporation for the conservation of the SAN juan BAY estuary (CCSJBE) for national estuary program (NEP) to support implementation of the NEP comprehensive conservation and management plan (CCMP) and EPA strategic plan goal 5: ensure clean and safe water for all communities and objective 5.2: - protect and restore waterbodies and watersheds to improve the water quality, protect the natural habitat and living resources, and support sustainable human uses in the estuary. During FY 2024, the SAN juan BAY estuary program (SJBEP), or estuario will continue CCMP revision process for a revised CCMP by 2026. This year's focus will be on implementing the CCMP roadmap which was developed based on the input from the 5-year strategic plan. In addition, will continue the development of puerto rico's first ever hazard mitigation plan. This year estuario plans to complete a risk assessment, economic analysis, and identify mitigation strategies that will be validated by its scientific community, government agencies, and other key partners. The program will continue to concentrate on the vital interests and concerns of the communities within the estuary watershed by focusing on community-driven solutions that attend to environmental justice issues, particularly those who are disproportionately affected and underserved.activities:the projects included will support activities that address the key challenges facing the estuary including assessing trends in water quality, habitats, natural resources and uses; coordinating implementation of the CCMP by the NEP, along with the state, federal, local agencies, stakeholders, ngos, citizens, partners, and others; and monitoring the effectiveness of activities conducted under the management conference approved CCMP and annual workplan. This upcoming fiscal year, the SJBEP will continue the coordination for the creation of a regional collaborative water quality monitoring network with various partners to collect water quality data more frequently and efficiently, ensure quality assurance, and enable quick turnaround on interpretation and reporting for corrective measurements. In addition, IT will continue the development of the green infrastructure master plan for stormwater management, focusing on identifying nature-based solutions to support infrastructure needs as well as vulnerabilities identified throughout the development of the watershed-based multijurisdictional hazard mitigation plan. The plan will primarily focus on stormwater infrastructure improvements to tackle the risks from massive defoliation after hurricanes and an aging gray infrastructure system. The SJBEP will integrate a youth component into the citizen science certification program. This will be initially focused on the coastal resilience module of the citizen scientist certification program and will recruit youth through high school schools in the region. The coastal resilience module aims to develop the capacity of the region to implement green infrastructure projects and assess and restore the capacity of ecosystems to provide their services. IT also seeks to strengthen the resilience of the estuary watershed communities. The youth component is designed to shape the next generation of leaders in this work. Subrecipient:no subawards are included in this assistance agreement.outcomes:the anticipated deliverables for the puerto rico water quality day are the organization and carrying out of the event. With respect to the watershed oil recycling program activity anticipated deliverables are the development of a regional education and action platform with the municipalities of the sjbe focused on the reduction, recycling, and correct D