COLUMBUS, OH -- For its efforts to maintain cleaner waterways and reduce waste from recreational watercraft, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) has received the National Clean Vessel Act Award of Excellence from the States Organization for Boating Access.
Ohio's emphasis is to work with public and privately owned marine facilities to construct pumpout facilities, which allow for proper sewage disposal by recreational boaters. The excellence award recognizes Ohio for having completed 40 projects and overseeing 20 additional ongoing projects since 1999. The national Clean Vessel Act, created in 1992, is administered in Ohio by the ODNR Division of Watercraft.
Clean Vessel Act grant funds are available to public and private marinas and other recreational boating facilities. All pumpout and dump station facilities funded through this state-administered federal grant program must be open to the public. Grant funds will pay 100 percent of approved construction and renovations of boating pumpout and dump stations.
Additional information on the Clean Vessel Act and other ODNR grant funding can be obtained on the ODNR Internet web page at ohiodnr.com.