The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a $5 million grant to fund projects aimed at improving water quality in the state of Illinois last Tuesday.
Illinois EPA plans to distribute the $5 million across an anticipated two to 10 awards. The minimum grant amount will be $75,000, while the maximum amount granted for a singular award from the Green Infrastructure Grant Opportunities Program will be $2,500,000.
The funding will be allocated through the GIGO Program, which focuses on using funding to construct best management practices (BMPs). These are designed to minimize stormwater runoff in order to reduce the amount of floods in Illinois’ rivers and lakes.
According to GIGO, projects are labeled as green infrastructure, or any stormwater management technique, used to restore or enhance natural hydrology. Forms of green infrastructure projects include but are not limited to rainwater harvesting, floodplain reconnection and bioinfiltration.
GIGO will choose the best recipients based on the description and purpose of the project, and award the recipient accordingly. The grant will cover up to 75% of the project cost, whereas the rest of the cost is entirely dependent on the grantee.
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The Notice of Funding Opportunity can be found here for more information and eligibility requirements.
