The Environmental Protection Agency is accepting grant applications for water quality, seagrass and coral health-related projects within the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and the adjacent areas of Southeast Florida, Florida Bay, Biscayne Bay, Caloosahatchee Estuary and Indian River Lagoon. A total of $3 million is available to fund approximately 20 proposals at amounts ranging from $75,000 to $325,000. Applications must be submitted through Grants.gov (www.grants.gov) no later than August 7, 2020.
Priority action items include research projects or special studies to improve water quality in residential canals, evaluate central wastewater shallow injection wells, investigate stormwater inputs, and demonstrate innovative solutions to reduce impacts to nearshore water quality, and expand marina pump-out services. Outreach projects that increase environmental awareness, partnerships and stewardship of water quality and natural resources within the Florida Keys are also eligible.
Grant funding is also available to support stony coral tissue loss disease response, prevention and mitigation of harmful algal blooms, water quality and seagrass monitoring networks, water quality data analysis, restoration of sponge communities and other aquatic habitats, and marine debris removal, prevention and education.
For more information about the grant program, contact Jennifer Shadle at shadle.jennifer@epa.gov or Steven Blackburn at (404) 562-9397, blackburn.steven@epa.gov. For information about water quality initiatives in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, contact Karen Bohnsack at karen.bohnsack@noaa.gov.
