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News Release RI Department of Environmental Management 235 Promenade Street, Providence, RI 02908 (401) 222-2771 TDD/(401) 222-4462
DEM AWARDS $106,681 IN FEDERAL FUNDS FOR BOAT SEWAGE PUMP-OUT FACILITIES PROVIDENCE - The Department of Environmental Management has awarded $106,681 in grants for new or upgraded marine pump-out facilities. The amount includes $47,625 for new pump-out facilities and $59,056 for repairs or maintenance to currently operating systems. Funding for the projects was provided to DEM through the federal Clean Vessel Act pump-out grant program, administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Each grant requires a 25 percent match.These grant projects will add three new stationary pump-out locations to the 18 pump-out boats and 45 land-based facilities already available to boaters in Rhode Island waters. There are an estimated 54,000 boats that use Rhode Island waters each year, including more than 42,000 registered in Rhode Island. "These grants are critical to the health of Narragansett Bay," said Governor Donald L. Carcieri. "The success of our efforts to effectively maintain the Ocean State's 'no discharge' designation is dependent on our ability to provide an adequate supply of functional marine pump-out locations. The funds awarded by DEM will ensure that boaters navigating our waters will have access to well-maintained and more numerous facilities." Grants for new stationary pump-out facilities include $18,750 to Mills Creek Marina Inc. in North Kingstown; $18,750 to Quonset Davisville Navy Yacht Club, Inc. in North Kingstown; and $10,125 to the Town of New Shoreham's Harbormaster's Office for a new pump-out station in Old Harbor. Grants for repairs or upgrades to existing pump-out facilities were awarded to the Town of Jamestown for maintenance of the East and West Ferry docks, $10,148; Town of New Shoreham Harbormaster's Office, $9,000, for renovations to the deck and tank of a pump-out boat in New Harbor; Brewers Wickford Cove Marina in North Kingstown for a factory rebuild and upgrade of two stationary pump-out units; Bowen's Wharf Co., Inc. of Newport, $18,750 for upgrades to a stationary pump-out facility; and $18,750 to Warwick Cove Marina in Warwick for upgrades to a stationary pump-out facility. Warwick Cove Marina's innovative upgrade plan includes installation of a solar heating system that will prevent the pump-out facility's hoses from freezing during the colder winter months, allowing for year-round operation of the unit. Boaters have been prohibited from discharging sewage into Rhode Island waters since 1998, when Rhode Island became the first state in the country to receive a statewide "no discharge" designation from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Boat sewage can degrade water quality by introducing bacteria, pathogens, and chemicals, harmful to humans and marine life, and by introducing excess nutrients that stimulate algae blooms which deplete oxygen. Over the past 11 years, DEM has been educating boaters about the law, boosting efforts to enforce the law, and working to assure a sufficient number of pump-out facilities for boaters' convenience. To date, DEM has awarded more than $1 million in Clean Vessel Act funds for pump-out facilities to make it convenient for boaters to dispose of boat sewage properly. The Department will announce the availability of a new grant round in late 2009. For further information, contact Joseph Migliore at DEM's Office of Water Resources, at 222-3961 ext. 7258 or via e-mail at joseph.migliore@dem.ri.gov. -30- |
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