The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) received a $393,783 grant to support pollution prevention activities, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced Wednesday.

The grant funding will be used to identify, develop, document and share practices for pollution prevention efforts, the EPA announcement said.

“We are proud to award CDPHE almost $400,000 in (pollution prevention) funds to protect the environment, increase sustainability and reduce waste and costs,” said EPA Regional Administrator Greg Sopkin.

“The funding will help CDPHE develop and share (pollution prevention) best practices with the business community through a diverse range of pathways over the course of two years.”

The project’s partners, Colorado State University and Colorado Environmental Leadership Programs, will provide technical assessments to food and beverage manufacturers and chemical manufacturers.

The project will also fund five pollution prevention CSU internships, community-based pollution prevention efforts, a state-wide environmental recognition event and pollution prevention/Environmental Management Systems training.

CDPHE is required to develop at least one case study during the two-year grant period on pollution prevention practices that are either new or where detailed information on the practices could benefit other businesses.

The grants are awarded in honor of the 30th anniversary of the Pollution Prevention Act.

“These grant awards encourage businesses and other stakeholders to find ways to prevent pollution from entering any waste stream, furthering EPA’s mission to protect public health and the environment,” EPA said in the announcement.

EPA selected 42 organizations in September to receive a combined total of $9.3 million in funding for pollution prevention grants.