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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it has awarded $4 million to help to create a competition to fund initiatives of the National Estuary Program. In May of 2016 Congressman Bill Posey’s (R-Rockledge) bipartisan legislation was signed into law which created this competitive grant program to help estuaries with urgent needs like our Indian River Lagoon obtain additional funding.

“Many of our nation’s estuaries are experiencing similar health challenges as our Indian River Lagoon. This important funding will be put to work on the ground to help restore the health of our estuaries through our new competitive grant program,” said Congressman Posey.

Under this program, the EPA formed a cooperative agreement with Restore America’s Estuaries, a nonprofit alliance of coastal conservation groups, to administer a competition to provide local estuary programs with the opportunity to apply for additional funding for initiatives that will improve the health of their estuaries. Posey said that the emphasis on competition will help spur creative solutions that can be examined, shared and put to work in other estuaries across the nation.