Today, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe announced a $3.5 million Columbia River Basin Restoration Program Toxics Reduction Lead Grant for the City of Nampa. The grant, funded by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, is intended for a stormwater treatment project aimed at improving water quality, reducing toxins and protecting salmon.
“Funding from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is enhancing our local partnership with the City of Nampa to help restore the Columbia River Basin, protect public health, improve water quality, and support salmon threatened by harmful pollution,” said EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe. “EPA is committed to investing in innovative infrastructure to reduce toxic contaminants, improve watershed health, respect Tribal treaty rights, and ensure that the Basin can remain a vital economic engine that supports a wide range of recreational activities.”
The City of Nampa will collaborate with regional stakeholders on the Columbia River Basin Tributaries Water Quality Improvements Project. The project will use a free water surface wetland to capture and treat stormwater runoff. This constructed wetland will improve water quality, reduce runoff and promote citizen engagement through a process dubbed “Measure – Treat – Implement – Educate.”
“EPA has been collaborating with the City of Nampa for years on stormwater management with the goal of improving water quality in the Columbia River Basin,” said EPA Region 10 Administrator Casey Sixkiller. “This grant will support our project partners as they advance innovative strategies to reduce toxics.”
The project will serve as a pilot to determine viable treatment options for all of Canyon County through an online repository titled “One Water, One People.” Partners include the City of Caldwell, Idaho Transportation Department and Idaho Department of Environmental Quality.
“The City of Nampa is excited for the opportunity to utilize this ground for the Karcher Wetland Project and greatly appreciate EPA's support through Columbia River Basin grant funds,” said Nampa Mayor Debbie Kling. “This innovative project will improve water quality on Indian Creek and is another example of Nampa's good stewardship of our environmental resources."
The project aims to treat stormwater before it reaches area waterways, which is crucial for improving water quality and environmental health for the local community, as well as those downstream in the Columbia River Basin. The focus will be on improvements that contribute to water quality in Indian and Mason creeks in Nampa.
The Columbia River Basin covers 260,000 square miles across seven states including Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. It provides benefits including commercial fisheries, agriculture, forestry, recreation, and electric power generation. However, human activities have contributed toxic contaminants to the environment and throughout the Basin.
In 2022, the EPA Columbia River Basin Program received $79 million over five years from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This funding enables EPA to expand the Columbia River Basin Restoration Program and significantly increase competitive grants throughout the Basin to reduce toxics.
Last September, President Biden issued a Memorandum on Restoring Healthy and Abundant Salmon, Steelhead, and Other Native Fish Populations in the Columbia River Basin. In this memo, he called for “a sustained national effort to restore healthy and abundant native fish populations in the Basin.”
The Columbia River Basin Restoration Program focuses on engaging tribal and underserved communities in efforts to identify and reduce threats to their environment and community health. EPA’s commitment to reducing toxics in fish and water in the Columbia River Basin is key to its ongoing trust responsibility to tribal governments.
