NOTICES
DEPARTMENT OF
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Growing Greener Plus Grants Program; Request for Applications
[53 Pa.B. 1868]
[Saturday, April 1, 2023]As part of the Department of Environmental Protection's (Department) Growing Greener Plus Grants Program, applications will soon be accepted for Growing Greener (Watershed Restoration and Protection) grants under 27 Pa.C.S. §§ 6101—6119 (relating to Environmental Stewardship and Watershed Protection Act) and Bond Forfeiture grants under section 18(j) of the Surface Mining Conservation and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) (52 P.S. § 1396.18(j)). The Department will begin accepting applications on Friday, April 21, 2023. New this year, applicants may apply for Stormwater Management Planning (Act 167) grants under the Storm Water Management Act (32 P.S. §§ 680.1—680.17). Growing Greener grants are designed to improve or protect this Commonwealth's waters from nonpoint source pollution associated with agricultural activities, acid mine drainage (AMD), stormwater runoff, energy resource extraction, and streambank and shoreline degradation, while Bond Forfeiture grants are designed to address legacy mining impacts. The primary focus of Act 167 grants is the preparation or revision of Act 167 plans by counties.
Eligible applicants include counties, municipalities, municipal authorities, county conservation districts, watershed organizations, councils of governments, educational institutions and other authorized organizations involved in water resource restoration and protection. The maximum Growing Greener grant request amount is $500,000.
The Department has identified multiple priority areas for this grant solicitation. Priority areas for Growing Greener grants include projects that reduce nonpoint source pollution, especially nitrogen, phosphorous and sediment pollution from agricultural and stormwater runoff. The Department is particularly interested in design and construction projects that implement effective best management practices (BMP) that reduce or eliminate pollutant loadings and lead to local water quality improvements. A new priority for Growing Greener grants are technical assistance projects that include public-private partnerships and that focus on multiple regions or Statewide scale with the purpose to expedite on-the-ground, BMP implementation.
Through the same application process, applicants can also apply for funding through the Department's SMCRA Grant Programs to address legacy mining impacts or Act 167 grants. Eligible Act 167 grant applicants include counties, municipalities and municipal authorities (only as a co-applicant with the municipality or municipalities they serve). SMCRA grants are available to various entities including municipalities, municipal authorities and nonprofit organizations for projects meeting AMD Set-Aside or Bond Forfeiture grant requirements. AMD Set-Aside Grants are no longer part of the Growing Greener Plus Grants Program. AMD projects remain eligible for Growing Greener; however, AMD discharges resulting from coal mining that was abandoned prior to 1977 are encouraged to apply to the Department's Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation's new Abandoned Mine Land (AML)/AMD Grant Program. More information on the Department's AML/AMD Grant Program was published at 53 Pa.B. 907 (February 11, 2023) and is also available on the Department's web site at https://www.dep.pa.gov/Business/Land/Mining/AbandonedMineReclamation/Pages/AML-AMD-Grant-Program.aspx.
As part of a plea, Energy Transfer will also pay $10 million towards projects that improve the health and safety of water sources along the routes of the Mariner East II pipeline and the Revolution pipeline. These funds will be dedicated to raising the quality of the watersheds and streams most impacted by pipeline construction above the quality level they were at before construction began. Energy Transfer is already required to restore the land they built through; none of these funds can be used for projects Energy Transfer is already required to complete. The best way to restore our natural resources impacted by these pipelines is with the work of volunteers and citizen groups all across the length of the pipelines. Community organizations including watershed associations, conservancy groups, Trout Unlimited chapters or other volunteer organizations in one of the counties impacted by the pipelines should prepare project proposals to make our water cleaner and safer. Funds resulting from this plea will be directed through existing Commonwealth programs such as the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources' grant programs, Growing Greener Plus, the Coldwater Heritage Partnership and others. This way the Commonwealth can ensure projects are impactful, funding is used effectively, redundancies are limited and projects are completed which wouldn't have been possible without this compensation.
Grant applications and all attachments must be submitted online through the Commonwealth's Electronic Single Application web site, eGrants, at www.esa.dced. state.pa.us. Applications will be accepted beginning at 8 a.m. on Friday April 21, 2023, through 11:59 p.m. on Friday, June 23, 2023. Late submissions will not be considered.
For more information, visit the Department's Growing Greener Plus Grants Program webpage at https://www.dep.pa.gov/Citizens/GrantsLoansRebates/Growing-Greener/Pages/default.aspx.
RICHARD NEGRIN,
Acting Secretary
[Pa.B. Doc. No. 23-435. Filed for public inspection March 31, 2023, 9:00 a.m.]
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