Ohio EPA Drinking Water Grants for Small Public Water Systems

Ohio EPA's hub of small reimbursement grants for public water systems, covering emergency generators (up to $50,000), condition assessment programs (up to $20,000), source water protection strategies (up to $20,000), well abandonment (up to $15,000 per well), and water audits.

Ohio EPA's Division of Drinking and Ground Waters offers a set of targeted grants for public water systems, most aimed at community systems serving fewer than 10,000 people. Current programs include: Emergency Generator Grants up to $50,000 for systems without backup power at the treatment plant or critical distribution infrastructure; Condition Assessment Grants up to $20,000 to hire a third-party contractor to build a condition assessment program for asset management; Source Water Protection Strategies Grants up to $20,000 per strategy, prioritizing groundwater systems with high susceptibility to contamination (eligible items include spill kits, intake booms, early warning monitoring wells, and BMPs like riparian buffers); Well Abandonment Grants up to $15,000 per well to properly plug inactive wells; and Water Audit and Water Loss Control Grants up to $20,000. All are reimbursement grants. The most recent rounds for the generator, condition assessment, source water, and well abandonment grants ran November 3 to December 19, 2025, so watch for a similar late-fall 2026 window for Program Year 2027. The Service Line Inventory Assistance round (free contractor help) closed September 18, 2026. These are small, quick, practical dollars that pair well with the Ohio DWAF and WPCLF loans already in the library.