EPA gives Onondaga County technical assistance, funding for stormwater project

SYRACUSE — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing technical assistance and funding to Onondaga County in planning stormwater and wastewater projects.

The EPA is offering a total of $335,000 in assistance to Onondaga County and four other communities in Vermont, New Hampshire, California, and Missouri, the agency said in a news release. It did not specify how much money each community would receive.

Specifically, the EPA will assist the Onondaga County Department of Water Environment Protection, which proposed to identify, evaluate, and select stormwater and wastewater projects.

The department, located at 650 Hiawatha Blvd. West in Syracuse, works to “protect and improve the water environment of Onondaga County in a cost-effective
manner,” according to its website.

The EPA in May requested letters of interest from communities that desired technical assistance with such projects. The agency said 28 communities responded.

The federal agency evaluated the requests based on several factors, including human health and water-quality challenges, innovative approaches, community and national impacts, and commitment to integrated planning.

Integrated planning allows communities to sequence projects so they can start those with the highest priority first, the agency contended. EPA technical assistance will help recipients meet Clean Water Act requirements for water management in a “cost-effective and environmentally beneficial way,” it added.