EPA Announces $34,403,346 in Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grants in Alabama and Tennessee
Grants
The Community Change Grants Program is the single largest investment in environmental and climate justice in history. The funding announcement today is the first tranche of nearly $2 billion from the program that was designed based on community input to award grants on a rolling basis.
This initial selection cohort includes over $14 million to Texas A&M University and the Black Belt Unincorporated Wastewater Program to install onsite wastewater treatment systems for 350 households that lack adequate wastewater management in Alabama’s Hale, Lowndes, and Wilcox counties. This project also will develop a training, certification, and post-secondary bridge program to produce in-demand wastewater-professionals for this rural area.
Additionally, nearly $20 million to Trust for Public Land and the City of Chattanooga to develop a 2.6-mile trail system in south Chattanooga, expand greenspace and tree canopy, and improve stormwater and floodplain management using nature-based solutions. This project, first identified as a community priority in 2002, will help transform and reconnect three disadvantaged communities that have been isolated by railroads, highways, and other barriers. More than 3,800 individuals who live within a half-mile of the trail will benefit from this project.
The two selected applications in the Southeast are among 21 selected nationally under the Community Change Grants Program’s rolling application process. Informed by robust stakeholder engagement and community feedback, the innovative rolling application process will ensure that applicants have ample time to prepare and take advantage of this historic resource. The Community Change Grants Program Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), administered through EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights, is still accepting applications through November 21, 2024. EPA will continue to review applications and announce selections on a rolling basis.
The Inflation Reduction Act provides $3 billion to EPA to award grants that help disadvantaged communities and offer technical assistance. With these grants, EPA is delivering on this mission.
The Community Change Grants Program is still accepting applications through November 21, 2024, so EPA encourages applicants to submit applications as soon as they completely meet the NOFO requirements. EPA will be making additional selections on a rolling basis for the remainder of 2024. EPA also encourages interested applicants to apply for technical assistance as soon as possible, as the last day to request new technical assistance is August 16, 2024.