U.S. EPA Announces $4M Available In San Francisco Bay Watershed Restoration Grants

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is accepting proposals for approximately $4M in grant funding to protect and restore San Francisco Bay watersheds and wetlands.

The San Francisco Bay Water Quality Improvement Fund (SFBWQIF), a competitive grant program EPA has administered since 2008, has restored wetlands and streams and expanded the use of green infrastructure to reduce polluted run-off. These projects improve water quality and community livability by protecting shorelines, minimizing flood impacts, enhancing habitat for threatened and endangered species, and reducing nutrients, mercury and PCBs from reaching the Bay.

Selected projects will receive between $500,000 and $2M to focus on water quality results, such as restoration of impaired waters and enhancement of aquatic life.

All proposals must be submitted to EPA no later than December 5, 2018.

Since 2008, the SFBWQIF fund has provided $49M for 80 projects through 41 grant awards. Overall, these projects have supported restoration of more than 6,700 acres of wetlands.

This year the SFBWQIF proposal cycle coincides with the request for proposals for approximately $25M in grant funds for restoration projects available through the San Francisco Bay Restoration Authority.

For more information on the request for proposals, including the grant selection process, visit: https://www.epa.gov/sfbay-delta/sf-bay-water-quality-improvement-fund.