SPRINGFIELD — Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Acting Director James Jennings today announced a new Notice of Funding Opportunity with a total of $5 million available for projects that will improve water quality in Illinois. The Green Infrastructure Grant Opportunities (GIGO) Program has been made possible by Governor Pritzker’s bipartisan Rebuild Illinois capital plan. The Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is posted at: https://il.amplifund.com/Public/Opportunities/Details/936ac400-7c97-4c3e-8bbb-2e0c9ee711ca.
“Under Rebuild Illinois, the Green Infrastructure Grant Opportunities Program has already infused $20 million into Illinois communities, improving water quality with each new project,” said Illinois EPA Acting Director Jennings. “Green infrastructure projects not only control stormwater runoff impacting our rivers, lakes, and streams, but also improve the local landscape.”
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Illinois EPA is seeking proposals for projects to construct green infrastructure best management practices (BMPs) that prevent, eliminate, or reduce stormwater runoff, and reduce localized or riverine flooding in Illinois’ rivers, streams, and lakes. Projects that implement treatment trains (multiple BMPs in series) and/or multiple BMPs within the same watershed are encouraged as they may be more effective and efficient than a single large green infrastructure BMP. BMPs may be located on public or private land.
Under the GIGO Program, green infrastructure is defined as any stormwater management technique or practice employed with the primary goal to preserve, restore, mimic, or enhance natural hydrology. Green infrastructure includes, but is not limited to, methods of using soil and vegetation to promote soil percolation, evapotranspiration, and filtering or the harvesting and reuse of precipitation. Examples of project types/BMPs that may be funded through GIGO can be found at https://epa.illinois.gov/topics/grants-loans/water-financial-assistance/gigo.html.
Illinois EPA has set a maximum grant award of $2.5 million and a minimum grant award of $75,000. Applications for the GIGO Program are due by November 5, 2025, at 1:00 PM (CST). Additional information is available on the Illinois EPA website. Applicants must apply for GIGO through the GATA Grantee Portal.
