Drinking Water Source Protection Grant Program (OR)

The Drinking Water Source Protection Grant Program (OR) provides crucial funding for public water suppliers to enhance, restore, or protect drinking water sources. Established by Oregon's HB 2010, this program allocates $5 million, with individual grants capped at $3 million, to support land acquisition and conservation efforts. It particularly focuses on serving rural and lower-income communities, ensuring access to clean water while promoting environmental stewardship and community health.

Background
In June 2023, the Oregon Legislature passed House Bill (HB) 2010 that, combined with other legislation, allocates $5 million to establish the Drinking Water Source Protection (DWSP) Grant Program at OWEB. Through the DWSP Grant Program, OWEB will provide grants to public water suppliers to protect, restore, or enhance sources of drinking water through land acquisition and conservation. The program focuses on water suppliers that serve rural communities and/or lower-income populations but is not limited to these communities. See below for eligibility information.
Purpose
The DWSP Grant Program provides land acquisition grants to Water Suppliers to protect, restore, or enhance sources of drinking water through:

• The acquisition of lands from willing sellers;
• Entering into covenants, easements, or similar agreements with willing landowners; or
• Repaying a loan used to finance a project as described (a) or (b) above
• Funding
• ​​$5,000,000 available within the program
• $3,000,000 cap for individual grant requests
• Required Match: ​5% cash or in-kind match from non-OWEB sources​​