The Environmental Protection Agency announced Monday that it will supply the 12 state members of the Hypoxia Task Force (HTF) with an additional $840,000 to go toward “improving water quality” and “reducing excess nutrients” in the Mississippi River/Atchafalaya River Basin.
This is the latest round of funding for the project. The EPA previously announced that $1.2 million would go to the task force last August.
“By providing this new round of funding, EPA is further empowering our state partners to build on their ongoing efforts to update nutrient management plans, develop water quality trading programs, and demonstrate best practices in high-priority watersheds,” EPA Assistant Administrator for Water David Ross said in a release. “Recognizing and supporting efforts that are developed through state leadership is a key component of the Trump administration’s multi-pronged approach to reducing excess nutrients in our nation’s waters.”
An overabundance of nutrients can lead to algae blooms, hypoxic zones, and other water quality concerns, the release said. The money will fund state strategies to reduce nutrient loads throughout the basin.
“As states continue implementing their nutrient reduction plans, they need additional funding to build upon the successful water quality projects underway," Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said in the release. "I am very grateful that the EPA is doubling down on its water quality investment in the HTF states."
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