Congress recently passed, and President Biden signed, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to help the economy and the country continue to improve during the pandemic. This law authorizes $1.2 billion in infrastructure funding for roads, rail and bridges; expanded Internet access; and ports and waterways. The law also provides funding for safe and clean drinking water programs and projects. It’s this area that is of interest to golf course management. GCSAA has identified a number of grant opportunities for watershed, recycling and reuse, aquifer storage and stormwater restoration projects that may be able to help superintendents on their courses.

While the grants are not yet available, it’s helpful to take a look at this list and see what might work at your facility.

The law directs $8.75 billion in funding for projects specifically within the 17 Western states under the jurisdiction of the federal Bureau of Reclamation, which is a water management agency dedicated to helping those states meet new water needs and balance the multitude of competing uses of water in the West. Those states are: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and Arizona.<.p>

There are four grant programs here that might help your course if you are located in one of those states:

• Sec. 40903 Small Water Storage and Groundwater Storage Projects. This funds projects that would increase water storage capacity, between 2,000 and 30,000 acre-feet. Depending on the size of your facility, this could potentially fund a retention pond.  The federal match is 25 percent of the cost, or $30,000, whichever is lesser.
• Sec. 40905 Competitive Grant Program for Large-Scale Water Recycling and Reuse Program. This funds large-scale water recycling and reuse projects that provide substantial water supply benefits. This could include a program that reduces or reuses “municipal, industrial, domestic or agricultural wastewater”. This is limited to states, Indian tribes, municipalities, irrigation districts, water districts, wastewater districts, or other organizations with water or power delivery authority. The federal match is 25 percent of cost, which should be $5 million or more.
• Sec. 40907 Multi-Benefit Projects to Improve Watershed Health. This funds the “design, implementation, and monitoring of conservation outcomes of habitat restoration projects that improve watershed health in a river basin adversely impacted by a Bureau of Reclamation water projects”. Here this is limited as well, to state, tribal or local governments; an organization with power or water delivery authority; a regional authority; or a non-profit conservation organization. Federal share is 50 percent of cost, however it increases to 75 perent for projects where “the non-consumptive water benefit or habitat restoration benefits account for at least 75 percent of the cost”.
• Sec. 40908 Federal Assistance for Groundwater Recharge, Aquifer Storage, and Water Source Substitution Projects. This is assistance for groundwater recharge projects, aquifer storage and recovery projects and water source substitution for aquifer protection projects. The federal match is 25 percent of cost.

There are two grant programs under the Clean Water Title that could also help golf course management:

• Sec. 50213 Water Data Sharing Pilot Program. This is for projects that improve the sharing of information concerning water quality, water infrastructure needs, and water technology, including cybersecurity technology, between States or among counties or other units of local government. Potential examples listed are establishing a website or data hub to share water data; and intercounty communications initiatives relevant to water data. State, county or local governments with coastal watershed or water system with significant pollution levels; or a regional consortium formed of same are eligible. The federal share is 25 percent of cost.
• Sec. 50217 Stormwater Infrastructure Technology. Within this program is a Stormwater Control Infrastructure Project Grant program that funds planning and development grants for “new and emerging, but proven, stormwater control technologies”. Priority is given to a community that has municipal combined storm and sanitary sewers in the collection system of the community; or an eligible entity that will use not less than 15 percent of the grant to provide service to a small, rural, or disadvantaged community, as determined by the EPA. Federal match is 80 percent, but this can go to 100 percent for an “entity that shows financial need”.

All of this is not yet available. The funds for these grant programs still need to come from congressional appropriation. Then, the respective federal agencies, the Department of Interior and the EPA, need to publish the grant announcements. But now is the time to start to think about what you can do at your facility and who can you partner with.