The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) had two big announcements recently: the launch of $870,00 in climate resilience planning grants, and the release of the draft PFAS monitoring plan.

Resilience Planning Grants

The MPCA is providing $870,000 to Minnesota communities for assessing vulnerabilities and creating plans to adapt to the effects of climate change. The funds can be used to build resilience in three infrastructure areas:

• Stormwater resilience: reducing localized flood risk
• Wastewater resilience: preventing infrastructure threats from climate-related flooding
• Community resilience: adapting community assets and services, ordinances, and public spaces for the effects of climate change.

Tribal nations, cities, counties, towns/townships, soil and water conservation districts, water management organizations, regional development commissions, and the Metropolitan Council are eligible to apply. Applications are due no later than Tuesday, December 21st at 4pm. Planning grant projects must be completed no later than June 30th, 2023. There is no minimum or maximum grant award amount. There is a minimum match requirement of 10% of the grant amount, either cash or in-kind, provided by any organization involved in the project.

Questions about the grant can be submitted to grants.pca@state.mn.us with the subject line “FY 22 Planning Grants for SWC Resilience”. Click here to learn more.

Draft PFAS Monitoring Plan

Additionally, the MPCA released their draft PFAS monitoring plan on November 16th. The plan supports near-term priorities in Minnesota’s PFAS Blueprint. It lays out a path forward for PFAS monitoring at solid waste, wastewater, and stormwater facilities, hazardous waste landfills, facilities with air emissions, and sites in the Brownfield or Superfund programs. The plan does not establish facility-specific requirements, but outlines how the MPCA plans to prioritize locations for PFAS monitoring and what the monitoring will entail.

The MPCA is accepting input on the draft plan from anyone who is interested. Feedback will be accepted on their website from now until December 20th. Click here to read the draft plan.

Photo credit: Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.