Hawaii gets EPA grant for polluted water runoff

The Hawaii Department of Health (DOH) has been awarded $1.1m in funding by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to implement its Polluted Runoff Control (PRC) Program and to support water quality improvement projects.

EPA regional administrator for the Pacific Southwest Jared Blumenfeld said that the grant helps Hawaii to reduce harmful stormwater runoff.

"Our goal, along with the Department of Health, is to protect coastal waters and coral reefs from the effects of polluted surface water," Blumenfeld added.

The Hawaii DOH will provide $746,000 in state funds to the EPA grant for a total budget of $1.91m to implement the state programme developed under the authority of Section 319 of the federal Clean Water Act.

Grant funds will help state staff and local organisations to develop and implement watershed plans to achieve water quality improvement goals.

This year, the PRC Program will update Hawaii’s State Management Program Plan for addressing polluted runoff over the next five years.

The plan will identify strategic priorities, establish environmental goals and milestones and discuss how partners can be engaged most effectively to improve water quality.