Maintaining and improving water quality are critical for supporting individual and community well-being and overall environmental health. In recognition of the importance of water quality, DVRPC continues to build on its long history of water centered planning through plans and programs that strive to improve water quality, by managing stormwater, protecting forested headwaters, and promoting appropriate gray and green infrastructure solutions at a full range of geographical scales.
Coastal Zone Management
DVRPC administers the Pennsylvania Coastal Zone Management (CZM) Program in the Delaware Estuary. The CZM Program makes grants annually for planning, education, research and project implementation. Projects that promote progressive stormwater management practices and that control nonpoint source pollution are a priority focus of CZM grants and policy initiatives.
Water Quality Programs & Funding
Funding Navigator Program
Funded by the William Penn Foundation, DVRPC is participating in a nonprofit-led initiative called the Funding Navigator to assist municipalities and utilities in Southeastern Pennsylvania in accessing funding from the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act (IIJA) and other sources to identify, and implement water system improvement projects.
Water Table Program
Funded by the William Penn Foundation, the goal of this project was to build a stronger foundation for a larger, more diverse, resourceful, and impactful coalition of partners with a common mission to improve water quality through sustained, long-term relationships.
Municipal Water Tools and Actions
DRWI Data and GIS Work Group
DVRPC staff provides technical mapping, modeling, and spatial analysis assistance to the William Penn Foundation's Delaware River Watershed Initiative (DRWI).
Watershed Academy
Stakeholders identified DVRPC as an organization that could lead the development of a "Watershed Academy" action plan. The original vision for the Watershed Academy was a center composed of trusted water quality experts and educators. Participation in the Academy would be required or incentivized, and it would become a means to: a) provide water quality training for municipal staff and elected officials; b) provide training on state stormwater regulations for municipal planners and engineers; and c) conduct and synthesize research to establish scientific bases for ordinance standards.
The Watershed Academy concept has continued to evolve since 2017, and the format has changed from a physical center to a curriculum that education providers throughout the Delaware River Watershed could use.
Past Meetings
July 2018