Federal 319(h) Grants
Federal 319(h) Grants support Utah landowners, farmers, and watershed groups with voluntary pollution-control, restoration, and education projects to reduce nonpoint source pollution and improve water quality.
Funder: Utah Department of Environmental Quality
Due Dates: September–November (Annual application period) | December (Project selection) | July–August of the following year (Funding available)
Funding Amounts: $900,000–$1 million annually; no per-project limit; mandatory 40% nonfederal cost share
Summary: Supports voluntary, watershed-based projects that reduce nonpoint source water pollution and improve water quality throughout Utah.
Key Information: Projects must implement a watershed plan, with a DWQ-accepted 9-Element Watershed Plan already in place.
Description
The Utah Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Water Quality (DWQ) administers Federal 319(h) Grants through Utah’s Nonpoint Source Program, using U.S. Environmental Protection Agency funding under the Clean Water Act. The program supports voluntary, incentive-based best management practices addressing critical water quality needs throughout Utah. Federal funding is best suited to watershed-based initiatives, including watershed-plan implementation, pilot projects, technical assistance, and information exchange.
Supported work includes agricultural pollution controls, stream and wetland restoration, green infrastructure, effectiveness monitoring, engineering design, watershed-group capacity building, and targeted education. Priorities favor sustainable, nature-based solutions, riparian protection, coordinated watershed-scale efforts aligned with watershed plans or Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs), and public participation and citizen science.
