News Releases from Region 06
Two New Mexico organizations receive EPA Environmental Justice Grants
DALLAS – (June 30, 2020) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently awarded $30,000 to the Friends of Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge and the Taos Valley Acequia Association to help address environmental justice issues in their communities. The organizations were selected from a list of applicants from 2019.
“EPA works day in and day out to provide clean air, water and land, with a particular focus on environmental justice,” said EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler. “These grants support the Trump Administration’s promise to provide critical investment in low-income and minority communities that have environmental justice concerns.”
Nationally, EPA selected 12 organizations to receive a total of $360,000. Seven of the grantees will support communities designated as federal Opportunity Zones – an economically-distressed community where new investment may be eligible for preferential tax treatment. Most often, those who reside near these sites are low-income, minority, and disadvantaged Americans. By focusing resources on these areas, we can multiply the impact of the tax incentive and attract even more economic development to these areas.
EPA’s Environmental Justice Small Grants program provides critical support to organizations that otherwise lack the funding and resources to address environmental challenges in underserved and overburdened communities.
The grants will enable these organizations to conduct research, provide education and training, and develop community-driven solutions to local health and environmental issues in minority, low-income, tribal, and rural communities.
This month, as part of its 50th anniversary commemoration, EPA is highlighting some of the key state, tribal, international, non-profit, and private sector partnerships that have helped our nation further its progress toward cleaner air, water, and land. As one example, EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice coordinates with multiple partners that include federal and local government, business and industry, and academia to help improve environmental and public health conditions of low-income and minority communities.
For more information on additional winners, please visit: https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/environmentaljustice/environmental-justice-small-grants-program
More on EPA’s work in Arkansas: https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/NM
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About EPA Region 6: https://19january2021snapshot.epa.gov/aboutepa/epa-region-6-south-central
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