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Ohio receives grants to improve water quality
September 8, 2014 By Drainage Contractor administrator
Sept. 8, 2014, Ohio – Ohio will receive $7.4 million in federal grants to continue water quality initiatives already underway and reduce harmful algal blooms (HABs) in Lake Erie, according to a press release from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) recently announced the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funding after a meeting between U.S. EPA leaders and the directors of the ODNR, Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) and Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA).
Ohio has committed substantial efforts and resources toward improving water quality, including:
- More than $150 million for water treatment plant upgrades, water testing and HABs research
- Mandatory fertilizer application certification for Ohio farmers, with classes starting this month
- Implementation of agricultural best management practices in the Lake Erie Watershed
- Reduction of open lake disposal of dredge material
The additional funding will be administered through the Ohio Clean Lakes Initiative and will target soil testing, the planting of winter cover crops, installation of controlled drainage structures, precision soil testing and fertilizer management, the construction of manure storage and roofed feedlots and expanded tributary monitoring.
The ODNR says it will work with soil and water conservation districts in the Maumee Watershed to connect with farmers and implement the above best management practices.
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