ORANGE – The Orange County Transportation Authority this week awarded more than $2.4 million to 12 cities in an ongoing effort to improve water quality in Orange County.
To date, OCTA has awarded more than $20 million for water-quality improvement projects to every city in Orange County. The program has helped capture an estimated 1 million cubic feet of trash before it reaches local water ways that lead to the Pacific Ocean.
“This is yet another way that Measure M, our county’s half-cent sales tax for improving transportation in Orange County, is also working to improve the quality of life for our residents,” said OCTA Chairwoman Lisa Bartlett, also the county’s Fifth District Supervisor. “I am proud of the work that’s being done to keep our waterways clean throughout the entire county.”
The funds come from Measure M, also known as OC Go, the half-cent sales tax renewed by Orange County voters in 2006. The ballot measure includes funding for an environmental cleanup program that awards money on a competitive basis to cities and the county for projects that reduce the impacts of water pollution related to transportation.
Protecting the county’s natural resources, while at the same time improving the transportation network, is a key promise made to voters.
After reviewing 16 applications from 15 cities, the OCTA board approved $2.46 million for 12 projects focused on removing visible pollutants, such as litter and debris, from roads before they reach waterways. These projects include purchasing or upgrading screens, filters and inserts for catch basins, as well as other devices designed to remove pollutants.
The following cities received funding:
- Anaheim
- Costa Mesa
- Fullerton
- Huntington Beach
- Laguna Hills
- Laguna Niguel
- Los Alamitos
- Newport Beach
- Placentia
- Santa Ana
- Seal Beach
- Tustin
The OCTA board has approved funding for 154 projects – at least one from each of Orange County’s 34 cities and the County of Orange – since the program’s inception in 2011.
For more information on the water quality program, visit octa.net/water.
