The Department of Environmental Protection this week announced the award of more than $1 million in Environmental Education grants to fund 128 projects by Pennsylvania schools, universities, non-profit groups and county conservation districts that promote environmental education.

DEP will begin accepting applications for the next round of grants October 1.

Administered through the Department of Environmental Protection’s environmental education grant program, the money is used to increase environmental literacy among students and adults alike.

Grant amounts vary from $857 to $20,000 for projects that range from creative, hands-on lessons for students and teacher training programs to ecological education for residents. Examples include a vocational-technical school providing training on alternative transportation fuels to conducting field trips to learn about acid mine drainage and local water quality issues.

A list of grants awarded is available online.

The program was established by the Environmental Education Act of 1993, which mandates that 5 percent of all pollution fines and penalties collected annually by DEP be set aside for environmental education.

Since the inception of the environmental education grant program, DEP has awarded more than $5 million in grants to support the environmental education efforts of schools, county conservation districts and other nonprofit organizations throughout Pennsylvania.

For more information on the program and the next grant round, visit DEP’s Environmental Education Grants webpage.

9/22/2007