PALM BAY, Fla. — A new program announced by Gov. Ron DeSantis Tuesday will bring $100 million in grants to help the struggling Indian River Lagoon.

DeSantis said the goal of the Indian River Lagoon Protection Program is to fund water quality improvement projects like upgrading septic-to-sewer conversions, reducing harmful stormwater runoff into the lagoon and muck removal.

He made the announcement at the Ted Moorhead Lagoon House in Palm Bay, home of the Marine Resources Council.

"We also recognize the importance of the Indian River Lagoon," DeSantis said. "We've put huge resources into this, and we've had a lot of success already, and we're continuing to build on the success."

Overall, the governor is awarding $300 million in grants across the state and will eventually remove 1.1 million pounds of nitrogen and 286,000 pounds of phosphorous each year that produce seagrass-killing algae blooms and oxygen stifling muck.

A total of 21 projects will be funded across the state, including 10 in Brevard County — which includes a nutrient removal process set to be implemented at the Grant Street Water Reclamation Facility in Melbourne.

City leaders requested $8.6 million from the state to help pay for the $17.6 million project.

The Lagoon Protection Program falls right in line with the Marine Resources Council’s mission to restore the lagoon.

“Water quality is really the name of the game, so if we can treat water on land before it hits the lagoon, and also have projects that are lagoon based, we need the funding for that,” MRC Executive Director Laura Wilson said.

The Indian River Lagoon is the most biologically diverse waterway on the continent and serves as one of the main economic catalysts on Florida’s East Coast.