Massachusetts Selects Ten Nonpoint Source Pollution Projects
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) has recommended ten projects worth nearly $1.6 million in funding as part of the federal fiscal year 2007 Section 319 Nonpoint Source Competitive Grant Program. The grants are part of the Romney-Healey administration’s comprehensive efforts to preserve Massachusetts’ water quality by eliminating nonpoint source pollution.
The funds will assist municipalities, planning commissions, and watershed and conservation groups in implementing projects that will directly benefit drinking water sources, aquatic recreational areas, and the fish stocks that live in the waterways.
The projects will help to restore and preserve watershed areas, construct storm water treatment systems, demonstrate innovative technologies, and educate the public on how to protect sensitive natural resources.
The projects approved are located in the communities of North Reading, Bedford, Barnstable, Scituate, Sutton and Douglas, Ludlow, Pittsfield, and two projects connected to the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
The 319 grant program focuses on implementation of measures to control nonpoint sources of water pollution. Nonpoint source pollution is caused by diffuse sources that are not regulated and are normally associated with precipitation and runoff from the land or infiltration into the soil.
Common types of nonpoint source pollution include phosphorus and nitrogen from lawn and garden fertilizers, bacteria from pet waste and waterfowl, oil and grease from parking lots, and sediment from construction activities and soil erosion.
Each of the funded projects was reviewed and approved by MassDEP and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
