Miss., Fla. EPA cooperative awards

DALLAS – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the awarding of seven Gulf of Mexico Division cooperative agreements totaling more than $7.5M to fund projects that improve water quality, habitat, and environmental education in the Gulf of Mexico watershed. 2019 Water Quality Cooperative Agreement Recipients include B.F. Smith Foundation of Stoneville, Miss.: $1,149,813 for Farming Systems Research; Mississippi State University: $1,088,025 for Multi-State Collaboration to Improve Mississippi River and Gulf of Mexico water quality through farmer-led initiatives and farmer-driven data; Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies if Flora, Miss.: $1M for targeted restoration of natural resources though innovative technology, public partnerships and farmer cooperation in the Chipola River Basin – the largest tributary of the Apalachicola River. The basin covers more than 19,000 square miles within Alabama, Georgia and Florida, stretching from the Blue Ridge Mountains to the coastal marshes of Apalachicola Bay, Fla., and the Gulf of Mexico; Winrock International of Little Rock, Ark., Practical Farmers of Iowa, University of Iowa, and the Iowa Dept. of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. “This investment represents another way EPA is improving coastal resilience and protecting the Gulf of Mexico,” said Regional Administrator Ken McQueen. “These Farmer to Farmer projects will help prioritize resources and restore the Gulf.” The Clean Water Act provides authority/resources to protect water quality in the Gulf of Mexico and the larger Mississippi River Basin. EPA’s regional offices and the Gulf of Mexico Division work with states to continue to maximize the efficiency and utility of water quality monitoring efforts in the Gulf region. The GoM division facilitates collaborative actions to protect, maintain, and restore the health and productivity of the Gulf of Mexico; and partners with state and federal agencies, federally recognized tribes, local governments and academia. (Source: EPA Region 6 08/14/19)