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News Releases from Region 07

Iowa Department of Natural Resources Selected for Nearly $350,000 EPA Pollution Prevention Grant

09/24/2020

Contact Information:

913-551-7860

Environmental News

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Lenexa, Kan., Sept. 24, 2020) - Today, during Pollution Prevention (P2) Week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing that the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) is to receive grant funding supporting pollution prevention.

IDNR’s $349,991 project will conduct P2 assessments, internships and workshops, and webinars targeting large Iowa businesses and industrial facilities. These activities will help Iowa industries go beyond compliance and improve their environmental performance through reductions in energy, water, and hazardous materials usage and improved chemical safety.

“As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Pollution Prevention Act, we are proud to announce more than $9 million in P2 grants which will help businesses in communities across the United States protect the environment and reduce waste and costs,” said EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler. “The work done as a result of EPA’s P2 grants will create best practices that current and future organizations can use to cut pollution and advance innovation and economic growth.”

“IDNR’s grant project is a great investment. Focusing on reducing pollution at the source can stop it before it becomes a threat to the health of our communities,” said EPA Region 7 Administrator Jim Gulliford. “By conducting P2 assessments, workshops and webinars, as well as hands-on internships, IDNR will educate business partners on best practices and promote stewardship that will continue to benefit Iowa for years to come.”

“This two-year Pollution Prevention Grant award will allow DNR’s nationally recognized P2 Program to conduct assessments, internships and workshops reaching a wide variety of Iowa business and industry during this time period,” said Ed Tormey, Environmental Services Division administrator, IDNR. “We will be working to identify and implement reductions in water, energy, and hazardous materials. These reductions will result in financial savings due to implementing environmental improvements.”

EPA anticipates that it will award 42 individual grants across the country, ranging in the amounts of $25,000 to $498,000, once all legal and administrative requirements are satisfied.

For these grants, EPA emphasizes the importance of grantees documenting and sharing P2 best practices that are identified and developed through these grants, so that others can replicate these practices and outcomes. Each grantee will be required to develop at least one case study during the grant period on P2 practices that are new or not widely known or adopted, or where detailed information on the P2 practices could benefit other businesses or P2 technical assistance providers. The work done under these grants will focus on at least one of the five P2 priority areas, also referred to as National Emphasis Areas, and support several of the Agency’s Smart Sectors. These areas include food and beverage manufacturing, chemical manufacturing, automotive manufacturing, aerospace product/part manufacturing, and metal manufacturing.

This year marks 30 years since the passage of the Pollution Prevention Act, which focuses industry, government, and public attention on reducing the amount of pollution through cost-effective changes in production, operation, and raw materials use.

This week is also P2 Week, a time to celebrate the diverse and creative ways businesses, academic institutes, local governments, and other organizations are working to prevent pollution. In support of the Pollution Prevention Act and P2 Week, these grant awards encourage businesses and other stakeholders to find ways to prevent pollution from entering any waste stream, furthering EPA’s mission to protect public health and the environment.