DALLAS– The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded $100,000 to the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality for water quality management planning. The funds will be used to conduct analysis of chemical samples of rivers, streams and lakes in Ark.

The Clean Water Act allows EPA to issue states funding for regional water quality management planning projects. Our nation's waters are monitored by state, federal and local agencies, dischargers, and volunteers. Water quality data are used to characterize waters, identify trends over time, identify emerging problems, determine whether pollution control programs are working. The program also enables EPA to help direct pollution control efforts to where they are most needed, and respond to emergencies such as floods and spills.

Over 40 years ago, Congress passed the Clean Water Act to protect rivers, lakes, bays, wetlands and coastal waters. Streams and wetlands benefit communities by trapping floodwaters, recharging groundwater supplies, removing pollution and providing habitats for fish and wildlife. Families and farms located downstream understand the importance of healthy headwaters upstream. One in three Americans get their drinking water from public systems that rely on seasonal and rain-dependent streams. EPA is taking public comment on a rule to help protect our Nation’s waters.