The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced the availability of nearly $327,000 for South Carolina through the Sewer Overflow and Stormwater Reuse Municipal Grant program. This initiative is designed to assist communities in addressing stormwater and sewer infrastructure needs. The management of stormwater is critical to prevent contaminants, including untreated sewage, from polluting waterways. The EPA's grant funding will support projects that strengthen stormwater collection systems in cities and towns, making them more resilient against increasingly intense rain events exacerbated by climate change.
"Our nation’s waterways are vital to healthy communities. They provide sources of drinking water, support farming, power economic opportunity, and give us opportunities to swim and to fish," said EPA Acting Assistant Administrator for Water Bruno Pigott. "Keeping our waterways clean and safe is essential, and stormwater runoff is one of the biggest pollution challenges facing our water ecosystems."
Pigott further explained that under President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the EPA is making grant funds available for stormwater solutions. He emphasized that this funding does not have to be paid back, making it particularly effective in helping disadvantaged communities protect their waterways.
Jeaneanne M. Gettle, Acting Region 4 Administrator, added that sewer overflows can cause significant health and environmental problems in communities. She believes this historic grant funding for stormwater and sewer upgrades will encourage better health for people and the environment.
When rain and floodwaters overrun combined sewer and stormwater systems, they bypass treatment processes and transport pollution directly into creeks, streams, and rivers. These untreated discharges pose threats to human health, economic prosperity, and ecological function.
Additional funding for stormwater and wastewater upgrades is available through President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law as well as EPA’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program.
These programs advance President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative which aims to ensure that 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain federal climate, clean energy, affordable and sustainable housing, and other investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.
Stormwater can be a significant source of water pollution and a public health concern. The EPA is working with local and state partners to leverage the resources of the federal government to meet the needs of these communities. Changes made by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will prioritize stormwater infrastructure projects in rural (population of 10,000 or less) and/or financially distressed communities, preventing cost share requirements from being passed on to these communities.
