For more than three decades, the Environmental Finance Center has helped hundreds of local, state, and federal partners throughout the Mid-Atlantic region advance policies, programs, and financing strategies that achieve outcomes for people, places, and the environment. See EFC’s featured work below.
EFC's Featured Work
Region 3 WaterTA Program
The Region 3 WaterTA program offers direct support to municipalities, tribes, and water utilities in US EPA Region 3 to help them access federal and state funding to address water infrastructure needs.
Maryland Local Government Climate Action Support Program
EFC is coordinating with the Maryland Department of Environment to help build the local capacity of Maryland communities to plan, fund, and implement climate projects and community-based climate-related outreach campaigns.
Mid-Atlantic Sustainable Breweries
The Mid-Atlantic Sustainable Breweries Program offers free sustainability consultations to help craft brewers assess operations and implement practices related to energy, water, wastewater, air emissions, and cleaning and sanitizing – all while saving costs and improving brand recognition.
Rainwater Harvesting for Urban Farms
EFC is coordinating with UMD's School of Public Health, Extension, and USDA Agricultural Research Services to help urban farmers harvest and filter rainwater to nourish their crops and create more sustainable farms and resilient communities.
EFC Projects and Publications
See EFC’s work in action by browsing our current and archived (completed) projects below.
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2018 (June)Informing, Improving and Expanding Water Quality Financing Through Advanced Data Management
Over the past three decades, billions of federal, state, and local dollars have been deployed to support water infrastructure projects and other programs that reduce point and nonpoint sources of pollution to the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.View Project Details for Informing, Improving and Expanding Water Quality Financing Through Advanced Data Management -
2018 (January)Advancing Resilience-Supportive Economic Development on Virginia’s Eastern Shore
Photo by Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay ProgramView Project Details for Advancing Resilience-Supportive Economic Development on Virginia’s Eastern Shore -
2018 (January)Evaluating Financial Feasibility of Alternative Animal Waste Demonstration Projects
The Maryland Department of Agriculture’s Animal Waste Technology Fund (AWTF) provides grants for demonstration projects of innovative technologies for managing animal manure. These technologies are expected to improve on-farm wastemanagement, enhancewater quality, and create new revenue streams for farmers in the form of cost savings and marketable byproducts.View Project Details for Evaluating Financial Feasibility of Alternative Animal Waste Demonstration Projects -
2017 (October)Holistically Analyzing the Benefits of Green Infrastructure
Changes in the regulatory landscape, coupled with budget-constrained environments, are driving local governments to search for new or evolving strategies and investments that deliver more value than conventional stormwater management practices.View Project Details for Holistically Analyzing the Benefits of Green Infrastructure -
2016-2020Community Lifecycle-cost Analysis of Stormwater Infrastructure (CLASIC)
Community-enabled Lifecycle Analysis of Stormwater Infrastructure Costs (CLASIC) is a collaborative effort between seven institutions looking at green and gray infrastructure alternatives for stormwater. The four-year project (2016-2020) was funded at $2M by USEPA under National Priorities: Life Cycle Costs of Water Infrastructure Alternatives grant.View Project Details for Community Lifecycle-cost Analysis of Stormwater Infrastructure (CLASIC) -
2016 (November)A Different Approach to Investing in the Restoration and Protection of the Delaware River Watershed
Institutions like the William Penn Foundation play a critical role in natural resource restoration and protection efforts through their support of new and successful programs, projects, and conservation initiatives. However, ensuring the Delaware River watershed is a safe and reliable water resource in the long-term requires the philanthropic investments to be catalytic in nature, spurring further investments from the public and private sectors. With funding from the William Penn Foundation, the EFC led an 18-month project called the Innovative Financing Panel.View Project Details for A Different Approach to Investing in the Restoration and Protection of the Delaware River Watershed