Conserving America’s Wetlands 2008:
Four Years of Partnering Resulted in
Accomplishing the President's Goal

Appendix H.
Environmental Protection Agency

Table H-1. EPA Programs Supporting the President's Wetlands Goal in FY 2009. Funding (millions of dollars)

Table H-2. EPA Programs Supporting the President's Wetlands Goal in FY 2009. Planed Accomplishments (in acres)

EPA Programs Supporting the President’s Wetlands Goal

Five Star Challenge Grants Program: EPA and its partners—National Fish and Wildlife Federation, National Association of Counties, Southern Company, Wildlife Habitat Council, and Pacific Gas & Electric—have helped catalyze over 475 projects in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Each year, 40 to 50 grants of $5,000 to $20,000 are awarded. The purpose of the Five Star Restoration Program is to support community-based efforts to restore wetlands, river streams/corridors, and coastal habitat; build diverse partnerships within the community; and foster local stewardship of resources through outreach.
http://www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/restore/5star/

National Estuary Program (NEP): This program works to restore and protect these sensitive and vital ecosystems. The NEP provides funding and technical assistance to citizens, governments, businesses, researchers, and organizations in local communities to create and implement plans they develop collectively. These plans address problems facing their estuaries, such as excess nutrients, pathogens, toxic chemicals, introduced species, overfishing, and habitat loss and degradation. With its partners, the NEP works to safeguard the health of some of our nation’s most productive natural resources, and transfers the lessons learned to other watersheds.
http://www.epa.gov/owow/estuaries/

Nonpoint Source Management Plan: Under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act, states, territories, and Indian tribes receive grant money that supports a wide variety of activities, including technical assistance, financial assistance, education, training, technology transfer, demonstration projects, and monitoring to assess the success of specific nonpoint-source implementation projects, some of which include wetlands restoration projects.
http://www.epa.gov/owow/nps/cwact.html

EPA Programs that Maintain the Wetlands Base

Wetlands Grants Program: The EPA annually has provided funding to states, local governments, tribes, and nongovernmental organizations to strengthen and build comprehensive non-federal regulatory and nonregulatory wetlands programs. FY 2009 funding request is $16.8 million.
http://www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/

Clean Water Act Section 404 Program: EPA and USACE share regulatory responsibility pursuant to Clean Water Act Section 404. EPA and USACE establish the regulations and policies for implementation of the program, including development and implementation of the Section 404(b)(1) guidelines. The guidelines establish the substantive environmental criteria used to evaluate applications for permits to discharge under Section 404. FY 2009 funding request is $22.2 million.
http://www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/

Ecological Research Program: EPA’s Office of Research and Development conducts research on survey design, monitoring methods, and analyses used in the assessment of the quality of the nation’s waters, including wetlands. Research is conducted in partnership with states and tribes to demonstrate how assessments of wetland condition can be used to more effectively protect wetland resources and evaluate the effectiveness of management actions including restoration. EPA awarded $1.1 million in 2007 to develop and test methods for assessing wetland condition in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast. Approximately $400,000 has been set aside in FY 2008 dollars to fund wetland projects in states in the Upper Midwest and Rocky Mountain regions. In addition, technical assistance is being provided in support of the 2011 National Wetland Condition Assessment, including the funding of a pilot assessment of coastal wetlands in the Gulf of Mexico region. Other technical assistance, including training and data analysis support, is being provided to states and tribes to aid in the development of wetland monitoring and assessment programs. The overall research program is increasing its focus on evaluating ecosystem services provided by wetlands at multiple scales.
http://www.epa.gov/ord