SAN FRANCISCO – At an event today in San Jose with U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren and local officials, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention Michal Freedhoff highlighted a $776,636 grant to the California Department of Public Health that will provide technical assistance to general aviation airports in California in disadvantaged communities to support the transition from leaded aviation gasoline (avgas) to unleaded avgas.
“This grant will reduce exposure to harmful pollution in disadvantaged communities across California, helping safeguard residents who have disproportionately faced health threats for too long” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “EPA is proud to support projects that improve public health, prevent pollution at the source and advance environmental justice.”
“Growing up in an underserved community, I know firsthand how harmful pollutants can affect the health of our neighborhoods,” said U.S. Senator Alex Padilla. “Santa Clara County has led the nation in the transition to unleaded avgas, and I’m proud that the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is providing funding to build upon that work and help other communities in California protect public health. Too often, our most disadvantaged communities have also faced the burden of pollution from leaded aviation fuels, and this grant will help chart a thoughtful pathway to a cleaner future.”
“Investing in the transition to unleaded fuel is a smart and necessary move, and I commend the EPA for focusing its resources on this environmental justice issue. Recently, through a finalized endangerment finding, the EPA confirmed what families living in East San Jose sadly know all too well – leaded avgas is a dangerous pollutant. Leaders at all levels of government need to urgently act to free communities of airborne lead pollution,” said U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren.
The technical assistance California Department of Public Health will provide through the grant includes voluntary business roundtable discussions, training, and developing educational materials and case studies. The proposed project aims to improve human health and the environment in disadvantaged communities identified through the state’s CalEnviroScreen by reducing lead emissions that may harm them.
This grant is one of two pollution prevention grants in California that EPA will fund this year—the other going to the University of California at Los Angeles—and was made possible by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
EPA’s Pollution Prevention Grant Program advances President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to deliver 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain federal investments to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.
Ensuring greater availability and use of safer and more sustainable products can reduce harmful chemical exposures in disadvantaged communities and create a more sustainable and accessible marketplace. These efforts will continue to benefit businesses and communities across the nation by capturing what works and what can be adjusted in other communities. Recipients will share successful practices that are new or not widely known, as well as lessons learned, so that future businesses and communities can continue to innovate.
Background:
Between 2011-2021, EPA’s Pollution Prevention program has issued nearly 500 grants totaling more than $50 million, which have helped businesses identify, develop and adopt pollution prevention approaches. These approaches have resulted in eliminating 19.8 million metric tons of greenhouse gases, saving 49 billion gallons of water, reducing 917 million pounds of hazardous materials and pollutants, and saving more than $2.2 billion for business.
President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is boosting these efforts by providing a historic $100 million to support the program’s continued efforts. Thanks to this unprecedented federal investment, state and Tribal programs that are awarded grants will not be required to provide matching funds, which has helped expand access to these resources and broadened the applicant pool.
Read more about P2 and the P2 Grant Program.
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from EPA News Releases https://ift.tt/xoKmFsO