The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is providing $250 million in planning grants to reduce climate pollution and promote economic growth.
EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in the EPA's March 1 grants announcement that the "Climate Pollution Reduction Grants are an important first step to equip communities with the resources to create innovative strategies that reduce climate emissions and drive benefits across the country.”
States, municipalities, territories, Tribes and air agencies will use CPRG planning grants to develop broad, inclusive and inventive plans to reduce pollution and guarantee the investments will "maximize benefits, especially for low-income and disadvantaged communities," the announcement states. Climate plans are to include inventories of greenhouse gas emissions; emissions projections and reduction targets; benefits to economy, health, community including disadvantaged and low-income; workforce, staffing and budget needs; and more, according to the announcement.
All 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are eligible for up to $3 million each, the EPA reports. Each government must work with sub-state jurisdictions such as air pollution control districts, large and small municipalities and low-income and disadvantaged communities across the state to create or update existing climate action plans, the announcement states.
The CPRG program includes competitive grants of $1 million for each of the 67 most populous metropolitan areas. Territories and tribal governments will also have access to millions of dollars in non-competitive planning grants; later this year, the agency will begin a competitive grant for $4.6 billion in funding to implement these plans, according to the EPA.
The program was made possible under Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, which provides historic funding for combating climate change, creating jobs and advancing environmental justice, according to the EPA announcement. Earlier this year, the EPA announced $100 million in environmental justice grants for overburdened and underserved communities.
“We know that tackling the climate crisis demands a sense of urgency to protect people and the planet,” Regan said in the announcement. “President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act is a historic opportunity to provide communities across the country with the resources they need to protect people from harmful climate pollution and improve our economy."
