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Ohio University Receives Ohio EPA Grant
Ohio University’s Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs will use a $23,721 Ohio Environmental Education grant to educate communities about protecting streams by keeping pollution out of storm drains.
The Rain to River Education Program will use storm drain stenciling and an interpretive, educational stormwater exhibit hosted in the Athens County Public Libraries and Soil and Water Conservation Districts’ water events.
Seven grants were awarded statewide for $247,874. The Ohio Environmental Education Fund provides funding each year for environmental education projects serving kindergarten through university students, the public and the regulated community.
Eligible grant recipients include environmental groups, public and private schools, colleges and universities, trade or professional organizations, businesses and state and local governments. Letters of intent for the next grant round are due to Ohio EPA no later than Jan. 9, 2017, and applications are due no later than Jan. 17, 2017. Prospective applicants are encouraged to contact the Ohio Environmental Education Fund on the web or at (614) 644-2873 to discuss project ideas.
The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency was created in 1972 to consolidate efforts to protect and improve air quality, water quality and waste management in Ohio. Since then, air pollutants dropped by as much as 90 percent; large rivers meeting standards improved from 21 percent to 89 percent; and hundreds of polluting, open dumps were replaced with engineered landfills and an increased emphasis on waste reduction and recycling.